Beyond The Mirror: Underworld
by Empress Nightshade
Summary: After a chance meeting, Hades desires a queen, but he's in for a deadly surprise.
1. Prologue

Chapter Zero:

-Two Sides; One Game-

* * *

Hades was suspended motionless in the Phlegethon. He was far below the surface, the weight of the souls keeping him submerged._ How did it come to this? One second I was on top of Olympus, and the next I'm trapped here in this death pit. I can't believe I let that little brat beat me. In my own kingdom, for crying out loud. Oy, there goes my reputation._

He opened his eyes. All he could see was green water and white souls swirling around him.

"Hello! Anybody! Pain, Panic, if you two whelps don't get me out of here, you're gonna regret the day you escaped Pandora's box!" Hades groaned, the water keeping his powers in check. _Ugh, who am I kidding? I'm never gonna get out of here._

Hades saw something pierce through the water and move in his direction. Narrowing his eyes, he realized they were vines, but he couldn't see the source of them. They slowly wrapped around his arms and shoulders, and briefly tugged, as if to make sure he was solid. The souls noticed and tried to pick away at the vines, but they were forced back, the vines shining with an immortal glow.

_So, those imps finally heard me._ Hades closed his eyes, letting the vines pull him up and out of the river.

He felt his body slide against the rough ground underneath him. He let out a haggard gasp, the shift from breathing underwater to the humid air briefly shocking his lungs. His himation and chiton were completely soaked with ectoplasm and dripped onto the ground. Hades frowned, his flame stubbornly refusing to reignite.

After a few tries, bursts of orange flames sprung from his body. His skin turned red, and he jumped to his feet. "Pain, Panic! It's about time, you miserable little yutzes! _If he gets out…_ we'll see if you're still alive once I'm through with both of you!"

A low, feminine giggle echoed past his ears, making Hades pause. His fire dispersed, save for the patch on his head that served as hair; it turned blue and slowly guttered against the breeze. His skin returned to its normal gray hue, and his clothing was now dry from his outburst.

"Have you ever considered anger management? It could do wonders for you."

_Strange, don't know the voice._ Hades raised an eyebrow. "Oh really, and who…?" When he turned around, his eyes widened, and his jaw slightly dropped.

Standing before him was not the imps, but a woman. Her hair was dark; part of it was held in a bun while the rest hung down, nearly reaching her feet. Her skin shimmered with a golden, immortal glow, the same one Hades had seen on the vines. His eyes traveled down her body, which was draped in a white dress that hugged her figure. Another giggle drew his attention back to her face; her big, blue eyes were staring back at him, flickering with amusement.

_What a goddess._ Hades felt blue flames scatter across his shoulders. He quickly smoothed his hands over his hair, calming it down. _This is not the time for a flare up._

She took a step closer, her brow furrowed. "Are you alright? You didn't swallow too much water, did you?"

He shook his head. "No, no, I'm fine. I… uh…." He cleared his throat before walking over to her. "Hades, Lord of the Dead."

"I know." She smiled. "You see, I'm—" She pulled the blue flower she was wearing from her hair and started fiddling with it. "In trouble, and I was wondering if you could help me?"

_That flower looks very familiar_. Hades tried to recall from where, but he couldn't come up with anything. He folded his arms. "Really, babe? With _what,_ exactly?"

"Perhaps we could go somewhere and talk?" She looked around. They were standing in a small passageway next to the whirlpool of souls, and it looked like the tide was starting to rise. "This place doesn't seem very appropriate."

Hades thought for a second before nodding. "Of course… uh… what did you say your name was?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." She smiled and put the flower back in her hair. "My name is Persephone."

_Now I know I've heard that name before, but where was it?_ Hades gestured toward the passage ahead of them. "This way. I'll take you to the palace."

Hades' palace rested in the center of the river Styx; it was shaped like a large skull, and stretched on into the dark mist above. Hades and Persephone stood at the edge of the river. The entrance to the palace was a long, winding staircase.

"You're gonna have to take my hand." Hades looked at Persephone, offering it to her.

She took his hand, and he teleported them across the river to the stairs. Torches aligned the wall and were lit with blue flames; they made their way up until they reached a large door.

"This leads to my throne room." Hades opened the door and gestured for Persephone to go through. "After you."

She smiled. "Thanks."

She paused in the doorway. Raising an eyebrow, Hades peered inside; the room was still scorched and messy from the last time he was in there. A magenta and green blur caught his eye, making him turn to see the two imps, Pain and Panic. They were playing ping-pong on the round table in the center of the room.

Pain struggled to hit the ball back, his heavy stature slowing him down. The ball bounced past his paddle and rolled over onto the floor. Panic laughed and jumped up into the air, his tiny wings allowing him to hover for a few seconds.

"Well, that's five to two. I win."

Pain huffed, trying to catch his breath. "No fair. Let's try for five out of seven this time."

Hades walked past Persephone and over to them. "How about we skip right to sudden death?"

Both imps temporarily froze in place before slowly turning in Hades' direction. Their eyes widened, making them drop their paddles.

Panic trembled, his chest heaving rapidly. "Boss, it's you! I'm so glad you're okay." He gulped.

Pain waddled over to them and quickly nodded. "Yeah, we were worried sick."

Hades folded his arms. "Is that so, boys? Cause if memory serves me correctly, you've been ignoring me since I was trapped in that pit. And speaking of the word _if_… such a funny word, isn't it?" His skin tinged red, and the fire on his head started to crackle wildly. "Because it always implies that there's a chance your little scheme WILL FAIL!"

Flames erupted all over Hades' body, and he shot two fireballs from his hands, roasting Pain and Panic on impact. The flames dispersed, revealing two charred forms of the imps. Their bodies were shriveled, and they coughed out a puff of smoke before collapsing on the floor.

Persephone walked over to them. "Friends of yours?"

Hades looked at her. "Minions, actually." He picked Pain and Panic up by their tails, ready to punish them again. "And lousy ones at that."

Panic pointed at Persephone. "Who is she?"

_Memo to self, torture them later._ Hades rolled his eyes before dropping both of the imps on the floor. "This is Persephone; she helped me out of the Phlegethon while you two were goofing off." He glared at them, his flames flickering again.

The imps quickly ran behind the table and hid. Hades smoothed a hand over his hair and sighed before looking at Persephone with a smile. "You want a seat, babe?" He took his place on his throne.

She shook her head. "No, thanks. I'm fine standing."

Hades met her gaze. "So, _Persephone_," he drew her name out, throwing in a smile, "I take it you don't frequent Mount Olympus often? Can't say that I've seen you up there."

She nodded, looking away. "I don't get out much. Of course, being such a low level goddess, I'm not exactly needed around."

He chuckled. "Ah, come on, whatever terrain you govern can't be that bad?"

"Well, I am the Goddess of Spring." She gave him a half smile. "Nothing really glamorous, but with Demeter as your mother, it's hard to be."

Hades stared at her. "Demeter?" She had a child? Since when? And with whom? Glancing over Persephone, he could hardly see the resemblance between her and the rotund Earth Goddess. Except for her eyes, but then again, a lot of the gods had blue eyes. "And your father?"

"Don't have one. Mother self-replicated me with her powers." She bit her lip. "Anyway, onto the reason why I'm here. I have sort of a… personal vendetta to resolve. I can assume you still hold a grudge against your brother, Zeus?"

He raised an eyebrow. "And why does that interest you?"

Persephone walked over to one of the pillars in the room, and traced the sharply designed structure with her fingers. "I was thinking that we might be of some value to each other. You see… I was banished from Mt. Olympus."

"Really?" Hades summoned a cigar into his hand. He flicked his thumb, igniting the tip of it and used it to light his cigar. "You must have done something pretty serious to receive a punishment like that."

He saw Persephone's expression go dark, and she narrowed her eyes at the floor, her hands tightly gripping the edges of the pillar. "I did nothing. That bastard Zeus framed me. There I was minding my own business, and he actually had the nerve to try to…." Her nails dug into the stone material. "Try to…."

Hades watched her. Tears were swelling in her eyes, and her breathing was heavy. It didn't take much for him to put two and two together. _Of course, Zeus' trademark move. Find a pretty girl and take advantage of her._ He furrowed his brow. "Wait, what do you mean? He tried to...?"

She lifted her head to meet his gaze. "Well… I sort of fought him off a little. Before he could do anything else, the other gods showed up. They didn't see the whole exchange, just me trying to choke him to death. So he switched the story around and said that I'd started the entire thing." Persephone stood up. "He put me up on trial just to humiliate me, and then he banished me." She scowled. "Asshole!"

Persephone punched the pillar she was standing beside. Her hand collided with its sharply carved edges, and she quickly pulled it back, wincing. She cradled her sore hand in the other and slowly rubbed it.

"Sorry."

"No, it's perfectly understandable." Hades took a drag from his cigar and let out a puff of smoke. "And what do you want me to do?"

"Like I said, I want revenge. On all of them, even my mother." Persephone's gaze deepened into a dark glare, the tone of her voice lowering. "I want Zeus dead."

Hades stared at her, his lips losing grip on the cigar. The glare she had was full of fire and malice and, combined with the delicate features of her face, made her alluring in a sinister way._ I think I'm in love_. He shook his head, knocking himself out of the daze he was in, and leaned back while letting out a small chuckle. "You and me both."

Persephone's eyebrows raised, her expression more wide-eyed and hopeful. "Then you'll help me? I could never achieve something like this on my own, and you're the only one who's ever dared to challenge Zeus. But if we were to work together, we could come up with a plan to get rid of him once and for all." She bit her lip. "So, what do you think?"

_Okay, I really must be hallucinating. This has to be a practical joke._ He rubbed his temples, but did his best to make it look like he was just thinking. Hades lowered his hand and locked eyes with her; he felt himself almost go into a hypnotic trance. _No, there really is a gorgeous goddess sitting in front of me, who seems to hate the Olympians as much as I do and wants revenge._

Persephone furrowed her brow. "Well…?"

Hades quickly brought himself to his feet and held out his hand. "You've got yourself a deal, babe."

She took his hand and shook it. "Perfect. So where do we start?" Blinking, she let out a small yawn.

He chuckled. "Tired?"

"Forgive me, I've been up for three days straight." She stretched her arms. "I must be more worn out than I thought."

He shrugged. "No problem. Now why don't you get comfortable and relax while I prepare a room for you."

"A room?" She held up a hand. "Oh, you don't have to go through all that trouble."

"Nonsense, I insist." Hades grinned. "Think of it as a little thank you gift for fishing me out of the Phlegethon."

She smiled. "Very well."

"Be back in a flash." Hades disappeared from the throne room in a puff of black smoke.

….

_Well, that went better than expected._ Persephone's smile quickly dropped. _I can't believe I slipped like that. Keep it together; you can't show any weakness to him. He'll just try to use it against you, and you can't afford that. _

Persephone walked over to one of the large, round windows. From there she could see the Styx. She looked down and watched the current drag the souls to another part of the Underworld. The water was clear, unlike the other river she had pulled Hades out of. She could hear screams in the distance; however, the direction they were coming from was unclear.

Hugging her arms around herself, Persephone shivered. _I wonder what else is down here? Still, this is the Underworld; I suppose it'd be normal._

She turned her attention to the throne room. Everything was made out of dark stone and the architecture was very gothic. All of the pillars had been carved into strange spiky designs unlike the traditional ones she had seen on Mt. Olympus. Even the throne itself was very plain with ghost-like curtains hanging behind it, a complete contrast to Zeus', which sat grand and golden amongst the stars and clouds.

_Heh, Mt. Olympus. _Persephone frowned. _It's not that great, especially with such an idiot as a ruler._

"Ready, babe?"

_He's back; don't lose it this time. Remember, you're in control._ She quickly forced a bright smile before turning around. "That was fast."

"Didn't want to keep you waiting." Hades offered her his arm and smiled. "Shall we go, then?"

Persephone paused, her eyes focused on his mouth. Instead of regular teeth, he had two rows of sharp fangs. _It kind of works for him_. She placed her hand on his arm and stood. "Sure lead the way."

As they left the throne room, she found herself staring at his feet. Well, if she could see his feet. The bottom of his himation swirled into tendrils of smoke, making him practically glide across the floor. Her gaze shifted to his arm; it was incredibly warm to the touch.

Persephone rolled her eyes to herself. _No surprise, given his powers._ Still the heat radiating from him was tempting; it was something she was lacking. _And his scent…. Like smoke burning off of embers. And his skin, it's so soft and pale. I wonder…._ A nauseous sting filled her stomach, and she felt her skin start to itch. She put a hand to her mid-section and tried to ignore it. _Not here. You have to maintain control._

Hades looked at her. "How long has it been since my little Titan escapade?"

She thought for a minute. "About three months."

"I was down there for that long?" Hades frowned before smirking. "Hold on, this is perfect. Zeus probably thinks I'm out of the picture for good; he won't suspect anything."

"I don't know about that." Persephone furrowed her brow. "After my little incident, I'm sure they're on their guard again."

"Then we'll wait." He sighed. "And what about your mother? She isn't going to come searching for you, is she?"

She shook her head. "No, I've already taken care of that. Don't worry."

Reaching the top floor, they headed right and down a dark hallway. The only source of light was coming from the torches on the walls and Hades' hair. He stopped in front of one of the doors.

"Well, this is it." He opened the door, letting her go inside. "So, Persephone, I was thinking tomorrow we could get to know each other a little better. You know, since we're going to be working together and all."

"Uh, that would be nice." She turned and smiled. "But just to be clear, this partnership between us is strictly business. If you have a date in mind, I'm not interested. Sorry."

"Oh, no, no, it's not a problem." Hades nodded before uttering, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Persephone shut the door, and her smile faded. She closed her eyes; she could still sense him, the scent of his vitality filling her nose. Her skin started to itch and crawl, and her heartbeat became rapid. Finally, she heard his footsteps disappear from the hall, his scent leaving along with him. She took a deep breath and shivered off the sensation.

She focused her attention on the room. It was an average size, and just as dark and gloomy as everything else she had seen. There was a bed against the right wall; the head and footboard had the same sharp carving design. The covers and pillows were black; she had to squint to see them on the bed.

_He really likes the creep décor, doesn't he?_ Persephone walked over to the large, round window on the far wall and sat on the edge. It looked over a part of the Underworld, although it was hard to tell what. A thick fog hazed over the land, making it look like an endless abyss.

"He was kinda cute, wasn't he?"

Persephone groaned. "Not now, Justin."

A young woman appeared on her knee, standing about three inches tall. She looked at least fifteen and was dressed in very tattered clothing. She scoffed. "If not now, when?"

"I'm not in the mood, okay?"

Justin tapped the top of her head with her finger. "You always say that."

She shrugged. "Fine, what do you have to pester me about this time?"

Justin floated up into the air and sat cross-legged in front of her face. "Would it kill you to show some appreciation?" Persephone rolled her eyes in response, making Justin sigh. "Look, all I said was that you seem to have taken a liking to that god."

"Don't be stupid." Persephone glared at her. "I just met the guy."

"And yet, you're still thinking it." She grinned.

Persephone folded her arms and stared out the window. "I'm serious. Don't forget the reason we came down here."

"To study the dead, and try to come up with an antidote for your little_ problem_." Justin quoted her fingers on the last word.

"Exactly. Meanwhile, I'll have Hades deal with those idiots on Olympus, and when it's all said and done, I'll finally be free of this nightmare." Persephone's breath caught in her throat, making her cough repeatedly. She lost her balance and fell onto the floor.

Justin gasped and flew over to her. "Persephone?"

Her coughing soon developed into a haggard wheeze. She tried to bring her hands to her neck, but she felt her body freeze in place. Her veins began to burn and tighten, and the nerves within her skin started to lose all sensation.

"How long?"

Her blood-shot eyes found Justin, and she let out a painful gasp. "Three days."

"You went without for three days!" Justin put a hand to Persephone's face. "What were you thinking?"

Persephone's eyes rolled into the back of her head, the pain becoming unbearable. Justin's shouts were drowned out until she ceased to exist completely. Persephone groaned. Her skin painfully itched, and her stomach started to fill with an insatiable hunger. And there it was, the scent, Hades' vitality; it had taunted her the entire time she had been around him. Calling to her, begging her to lose control. And now she could sense him despite being so far away.

_No, you can't. Resist; stop!_ Persephone gritted her teeth, tears spilling from her eyes. _I have to return to the surface._ With the last of her strength, she fled through the window, letting the congregating scents of the mortals above lead her way.

….

In a deep, dark forest, three men trudged their way down a narrow, dirt path. They were dressed in armor and were wearing swords at their sides.

"Drakon, are you sure we're going the right way?" The shortest of the three glanced around, his red hair shining under the small patch of moonlight. The trees were barren and looked rotten in some spots; the bushes covering the ground were nothing but empty twigs with spiky thorns. A breeze swept across them, echoing through the branches of the trees with a haunting whistle. "This place isn't too friendly."

"Don't be such a spineless twit, Agathon! This is the fastest way to the next city-state." Drakon scowled; he was taller and brawny. His dark, beady eyes looked ahead and narrowed at something in the distance.

It was a sign that read: _Five miles to Thebes_.

Drakon rubbed his broad chin. "It's been hours since Apollo carried the sun over Uranus. We shall set up camp. You two secure the area, and if you can, fetch some meat. I'm sure there'll be a wild animal or two lurking about these woods."

"Yes, sir." A tall, lean man nodded; he was blond with a huge bushy beard. He looked over at Agathon. "Come on, let's find some food. My guts been gnawing at me since we left that little village."

Agathon rolled his eyes. "Maybe if you hadn't been so distracted by the women, Linos, you would have looted enough food for yourself."

Linos let out a hearty laugh. "A man has many needs; it can be difficult to choose which to sate first."

Drakon whacked both of them across the head with the hilt of his sword. "Stop gossiping like a bunch of little girls and get to work!" He tossed a few stones to the ground, so he could prepare a fire.

….

Agathon and Linos quickly headed out into the vast foliage. They walked a ways until Linos spotted something in the distance.

A grin spread across Linos' narrow face, and he quickly nudged his companion before pointing forward. "Look, there! Some old man has lost his way."

Agathon looked in the direction he was gesturing. A cloaked figure was leaning against one of the trees, their form hunched over. He smirked and said in a low tone, "Such rotten luck." He reached for his sword and quickly pulled it out of the sheath. "Perhaps we should help him."

They both crept over to the figure, and Linos pointed his sword at it. "Hand over your valuables, and we might consider sparing your life."

The figure didn't respond, but instead slowly lifted its head, its face still hidden under the cloak. It moved away from the tree and staggered to find its balance. It finally stood straight, its legs spread wide and its arms hanging loosely at its sides.

Linos stepped forward. "What's the matter, old timer? You mute or something?"

The figure sluggishly stumbled over to them, and a faint moan emitted from it.

"What are you playing at? We don't have all night!" Linos roughly snatched the figure by the front of its cloak.

The figure lunged forward and bit into Linos' neck. He tried to push it off, but its grip was too strong. He toppled backward onto the ground, his cries turning into gasps for air. He reached out for Agathon, his words coming out as incomprehensible gurgles.

Agathon slowly retreated away, his eyes never leaving Linos. It was clear that his companion was dead, and he saw the cloaked figure raise its head toward him. Screaming, he ran back the other way.

….

Drakon heard the distress calls of his companions. Shaking his head, he readied his sword. He followed the path they had taken and was suddenly met with silence. His eyes darted in every direction, but he didn't see them anywhere.

"Agathon, Linos, stop being such cowardly fools and get out here!" Hearing no response, Drakon growled. "I never should have hired them."

He explored the area, looking for a sign of them. There was a sudden rustle in the bushes; he quickly turned around but saw nothing. Taking a few more steps, he felt his foot hit against something. It was too dark to see, so he reached down and grabbed what he had found. He lifted his hand and saw that it was Agathon's decapitated head. Examining the wound, he could tell that it had been bitten off. He immediately dropped it and turned his attention to the trees.

"Come out, beast! I'm not such easy prey!" Drakon watched every corner of the forest.

Before he could draw another breath, he felt five sharp digits pierce straight through his back and jut out of his stomach. Blood spurted form his mouth, and he screamed. Large teeth sunk into his wrist, making him drop his sword. The last thing Drakon saw before his thread of life snapped was two, blood red eyes.

….

Hades returned to his throne room and groaned. "You know, it figures. I get presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. A beautiful goddess shows up on my doorstep wanting to destroy Zeus, and she rejects me in five seconds!" His flames flared across his shoulders, but he quickly took a deep breath. "Calm down, she obviously doesn't know you very well, and she's trying to keep things professional." He grinned. "But that could always change. I'll just have to find some way to get her attention."

A loud ding graced his ears. Briefly glancing up, he saw three souls float past and into a dark hallway on the other side of the room. The numbers on the large soul counter above flipped, adding the dead mortals to the Underworld's collection.

Hades sat down on his throne. _Ooh, just thinking of being with a babe like her. Her eyes, and that smile, and that voice…. I could listen to it all day. And I don't know where to get started on her figure._ He chuckled and looked up, noticing a green and magenta blur running past. "Pain, Panic, get over here!"

Panic walked over to him while tightly twisting his tail in his hands. "Uh, yes, Boss?"

"Boys, I need you to fix up the place for our new guest. She's going to be here for a while, and I want her to feel comfortable." He smirked. _And if I play my cards right, that could turn into forever._

Pain waddled over and stood behind Panic. "But, your Mercifulness…."

Hades' skin tinged orange, but he stopped his outburst short and spoke in a sweet tone. "Pain, Panic, I would strongly suggest you follow this order without complaint. After all, you did try to abandon me in the Phlegethon. Which reminds me…." He snatched both imps by the neck, his skin turning completely red and his fire flaring out of control.

He exploded into a super nova, his orange flames consuming the entire room. When the fire dispersed, Hades was left standing in front of his throne, his coloring back to normal. He heaved, catching his breath. Pain and Panic were nothing but two piles of ash on the floor. The whole room was scorched black; parts of the pillars had been blasted off and now covered the floor with debris.

"Well, I feel better." Hades smoothed a hand over his hair. "Now hop to it, boys. I want this place spic and span." He headed out of the room and upstairs to his bedchambers.

….

It took a few minutes, but Pain and Panic were able to reform their bodies back to normal. They both coughed, trying the rid the ash from their lungs.

"Ugh… that went well." Panic hacked out a huge cloud of smoke.

Pain fixed his hair. "But what are we going to do? He's not going to believe us after we've screwed up this bad."

Panic narrowed his eyes. "Hey, this was your idea! I told you before we should have fished him out!"

"And I told you we should have left the Underworld, so he wouldn't find us if he did it himself!" Pain got in his companion's face. "But did you listen?"

"Only because he'd find us anyway. Face it, he owns us." Panic shoved him away. He stood and started to dust himself off. "But none of that matters now. We need to focus on this new problem."

"Forget it. You saw how hypnotized he was by her. If we tell Hades we were eavesdropping on Persephone, he'll just roast us again." Pain snorted. "Hey, maybe we shouldn't tell Hades' that she's using him. Maybe he deserves…."

Panic glared at him. "No, not this time. All this lying doesn't work. We tried it with Hercules; we got caught. We tried it to escape; we got fried. This time we're just going to play it loyal; we'll find a way to tell him about her. And soon." He shivered and hugged his arms, his tail curling around his body. "There was something off about her."

Pain rolled his eyes. "Well, yeah, she's a double-crosser."

Panic shook his head. "Not that, something else. I can't explain it. It was the aura she carried, like some otherworldly _evil_."


	2. Madness

Chapter One:

-Madness-

* * *

Persephone walked along the shore of the Styx; she glanced in the direction of the palace. _It's been two months, and yet I still haven't made progress. I would've never imagined spending my time in the Underworld of all places. The fates must have a sense of humor._ She sighed. "And now for another meeting." She made her way to the throne room and knocked on the door.

It opened, revealing a smiling Hades on the other side. "Afternoon, Persephone, come in."

She stepped into the room. "So what's on the agenda today, Hotshot?"

He closed the door behind her. "No plans this time, babe. I just thought we could get together for a little game." He gestured toward the large table in the center of the room.

It was a map of Greece. On one side, he had little figurines of Zeus and the other gods on Mt. Olympus, and on the opposite side were figurines of himself and the rest of the monsters in the Underworld.

Persephone pouted. "Chess? Come on, Hades, we've done this before. You know I'm horrible at it."

Hades lightly rested his hand against her shoulder and guided her to the table. "Well, think of it as an excuse to… uh spend a little time together. I hardly ever see you."

She raised an eyebrow. "I'm busy. And who are you to talk? One minute you're buried underneath a pile of paperwork, and the next you're locked in here judging all day." She sat down on the large pillow that had been placed on one side of the table. "I'm surprised you still have time for that girlfriend of yours."

He sat on the opposite end. "Hey, I'm the ruler of this place. If I want to make time I will." He rubbed his hands together with a smirk. "Now, you ready?"

"To lose? Naturally." Persephone looked at the pieces and picked up the one resembling Zeus. "Mind if I switch this one out?"

Hades shook his head. "Nah, go ahead."

Swirling her hand, a tiny figurine of herself appeared in it. She placed the figurine in the King's spot.

He nodded to her. "Ladies first."

Persephone stared at the pieces that were in the pawn spaces. Which one should she move? She picked the one on the very left and moved it forward two spaces. Turn by turn, they kept going until most of her pawns had been taken away. She frowned at Hades, who taunted her by dangling the piece in her face before tossing it aside.

_I really wish he'd stop doing that._ She frowned. "Honestly, why do you like this game?"

He shrugged. "What can I say? I'm partial to strategy."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I've noticed." She moved one of her knights another few spaces only to have Hades take it away again.

He grinned at her, holding the piece in the air. "Come on, babe, you're gonna have to try harder than that."

Huffing, she turned away and folded her arms. "Oh, forget it. I forfeit."

Hades chuckled. "Hey, no reason to be a sore loser."

"Strange words coming from you." She frowned. "Besides, you're impossible when you start gloating like this."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Alright, alright. I'll try not to gloat too much. Now will you make a move already; it's your turn."

She met his gaze. "Why bother? This is such a stupid game."

Hades raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you say that, babe?"

"Because it's completely unrealistic." She leaned back. "All of these rules, checks, and boundaries. Real Life situations aren't this cut and dry."

He rolled his eyes. "That's why this a game."

"Yeah, based on the belief that logic and strategy wins the battle." She smirked. "I bet you wouldn't last a day in a world completely warped and nonsensical."

He stared at her briefly before returning her smirk. "Is that so, babe? And what are the stakes?"

"Uh, stakes?" She furrowed her brow. "I didn't mean it that way."

"Oh, come on. It's just a little, innocent deal." He materialized a martini in his hand and took a sip from it. "On your end, I bet that you have to solve a problem using nothing but strategic methods. And if you win…." He tapped his chin. "I promise you Zeus' head on platter."

_Well, that does sound tempting._ She folded her arms. "And if you win…?"

"I'll figure it out when it happens." He grinned.

She narrowed her eyes. "You mean _if_."

"Yeah, yeah, details." He held out his hand. "Deal?"

Persephone sighed. "Well, what are the odds of either one of us having to do this?" She took his hand and shook it. "Deal." Looking up, she saw that he had materialized a bowl of…. _Are those human fingers?_ She pointed at the bowl. "What are you eating?"

He shifted his gaze from the bowl to her. "Just a little snack. Why?"

"Nothing." She put a hand over her mouth. _I really wonder about him sometimes._

Hades took a bite out of one of the fingers, making Persephone shudder. "Since I have you here, I need to ask you something."

She put a hand to her stomach. "What?"

"Well, it's about Minthe and me." He took another bite out of the fingers. "What do you think about us?"

Persephone bit her lip and took a deep breath before shrugging. "Hey, whatever starts your pilot light. Makes no difference to me."

He looked at her. "It doesn't?"

"You always go on and on about how no one ever likes you." She smiled. "It's nice to see you happy with someone."

"Really… well that's great." His smile looked forced and from his tone, he seemed dissatisfied with her answer. However, she couldn't imagine why.

Her gaze drifted toward the bowl. Just seeing the decapitated digits combined with Hades' scent was enough to send her over the edge. The pit of her stomach started to ache, making her bite down on her gums. She winced from the action.

Hades noticed her silence and followed her gaze to his food. "Something wrong?"

She quickly shook her head. "No." She subconsciously smacked her lips, her tongue feeling dry.

He raised an eyebrow. "You sure?" He picked up one of the fingers and dangled it in front of her face. "I know you're a vegetarian and all, but you're free to try one if that's what's bothering you."

However, Persephone's gaze was no longer focused on the rotten finger, but rather Hades' vulnerable hand. She abruptly grabbed his wrist, positioning it firmly in front of her face. And without a second thought, she opened her mouth….

"Hades?"

He turned, moving his hand from Persephone's grip, causing her to bite herself in the arm. She whimpered and fell to the floor. In the doorway, stood a small nymph.

She stared at the two of them, her hands on her hips. "Am I interrupting something?"

Hades stood up. "Minthe, babe, you're a little early."

Minthe smiled. "When your minions said that you wanted to see me, I couldn't wait another minute." She walked over to him, her light green, curly hair bouncing with every step. She stood on the tips of her toes and kissed him on the cheek. "It's dreadful being all alone upstairs without you. The other nymphs just don't understand me."

Persephone sat up with one hand resting on the table. She quickly wiped her mouth, her back facing everyone. "Well, I see you're busy, Hades. I'll just leave now." She stood up and rushed for the door.

"Uh, alright." Hades frowned. "Just remember that we have another meeting tomorrow."

Persephone waved back with her free hand. "Got it." The second the doors shut behind her, she let out a loud gasp and looked at her arm. There was a large, bite mark, and from the looks of it, she had almost ripped her own flesh completely off the bone. "That was too close." Using her goddess powers, she healed her arm until it returned to normal. "Time to go research a few things."

She left the palace and headed up along the shore of the Styx. Just ahead, hidden by a large, veil of leafy vines was Persephone's garden. Hades had let her build it, so she could feel more at home. She appreciated the gesture; having a small place to herself definitely made her more at ease. The garden rested inside of a deep cavern. It was very jungle like with various wild flowers, and plants everywhere. There were tall, strong trees sprouting different kinds of fruit; a faint mist spilled across the floor, making the air very thick and humid. Of course, most of the Underworld was very warm.

Persephone pulled back some of the vines and stepped inside.

"Now!"

Something whacked her in the back of the head. The blow was strong enough to make her delirious and defenseless to the green and magenta blurs she saw dragging her away.

….

Hades sat down on his throne; he watched Minthe walk over to him. Her big, hazel eyes stared up at him, her lips curving into a pout. He clasped his fingers together. "I'm sure you know why I called you down here, Minthe?"

She smiled. "Perhaps. I mean it's been an amazing three weeks since we got back together."

"Yeah, right." He glanced away. "Look, things have been fun, truly."

"I know. We've always gotten along so well. I think it was fated to be." She giggled. "I'm just glad you've finally decided to put those silly ideas about Olympus to rest. It would do you good to settle down, and I…."

Hades put a finger over her lips. "Let me finish. It seems like you're not achieving the job I've brought you here to do." He met her gaze. "So I'm afraid I'll have to let you go."

"What?" She furrowed her brow. "Job? I don't understand. You told me you desired a queen; I thought you wanted me back?"

He ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, but I never specified that it'd be you. I already have another _queen_ in mind, and it looks like the _make her jealous approach_ isn't gonna work."

"Another queen?" She glared at him. "You mean that stupid healer of yours? Why her? What does she have that I don't?"

"Everything." Hades watched her eyes widened with shock. He couldn't help but chuckle. Sure Minthe had always been cute and mousy, but Persephone was drop dead gorgeous. _Ha, I crack myself up. _Even when it came to brains, Minthe always giggled and agreed with whatever he wanted. Of course, he didn't mind. He was a god after all, but it left him without anyone to see eye to eye with. At least until now, the gears were definitely grinding between Persephone's ears, and he hoped she was the one to finally be his companion. "I honestly can't believe what I was thinking. Like she'd actually be jealous of you."

"So let me get this straight…." Minthe folded her arms. "You wanted me back just so you could lure in some other woman?" Her eyes started to water. "What do you take me for, you fucking sleaze!" She slapped him across the face.

Hades was still for a moment, stunned by the sudden action. Minthe continued to glare at him, her hands on her hips. He rubbed his face and took a deep breath. "You know, babe, that naivety of yours never ceases to amaze me." He let out a small laugh. "I mean it's the only explanation. After all, why else would a small, insignificant nymph like you think you were on the same level as a GOD!" He stood, his flames bursting out all around him.

Minthe fell back on the floor and cowered away from him. "I only meant that…."

"What?" Hades scowled at her. "That after abandoning me during the uprising, you expect me to give you special treatment! Well, you can forget it, you had your chance!"

Tears spilled from her eyes. "I'm sorry. You left me no choice; your plans to conquer Mt. Olympus would have invoked Zeus' wrath."

"And your fear of him was more important than your _love_ for me?" He seethed. "Get out."

Minthe blinked. "What?"

"Get out! Now!" Hades raised his arms, ready to blast her out of the throne room if he had to.

Minthe quickly brought herself to her feet and fled from the room. Hades calmed himself down and walked over to one of the windows. He sighed. Two months of trying to get Persephone's attention and he had once again come up empty.

_Get your head out of the cosmos and face facts. Why would any goddess want to be with you? Every single one before Persephone has rejected you and laughed in your face._ Looking up toward the ceiling, he stared at the blue flowers Persephone had decorated the room with. A faint vision popped into his mind. He saw a little girl dressed in white; she was sitting in a meadow full of those same flowers. He shook his head; that was all he could remember. _She's different. I can tell. I have to keep trying._ He pulled out a scroll and glanced over it. "Let's see…. Suggesting a date: immediate rejection. Giving her a garden: Succeeded in making her happy. Offering Zeus' head: Somewhat of a pleasant reaction. Making her jealous: Failure."

He returned to his throne and sat down. "Well, gifts seem to work, but there has to be some other way."

….

"Pain, Panic, what do you think you're doing? Let me go!" Persephone dissipated into flower petals and reappeared a few feet away from the imps. She glanced around. "And where did you drag me to anyway?"

They were in some deep, cavernous part of the Underworld. A red haze filled the area and she could hear the cries and screams of the souls.

Panic flew up and met her face to face. "To the outskirts of Tartarus. We're going to get you to talk whether you like it or not."

Persephone raised an eyebrow. "Talk? About what?"

"Don't think you can fool us!" Panic pointed at her. "There's something off about you, and Hades is too blind to see it."

"Is that concern I detect?" She snorted. "I thought you two didn't care about Hades?"

Panic paused. "Well, uh, it's… we, our…."

Pain sighed. "It's a love-hate arrangement."

"Right…." She folded her arms. "Well, I suggest you stop while you're ahead."

Pain narrowed his eyes. "Oh really, then why did we find your garden filled with skeletons?"

Her eyes widened so slightly that the imps didn't catch it. "You two _are_ dumber than you look. This is the Underworld, remember?"

Panic frowned. "There's no way there'd be that many in your garden alone. Plus some of them were killed recently. They were still covered with blood, and the remaining flesh looked like it had been eaten by something."

Snapping her fingers, vines shot out from the ground and ensnared the imps. Persephone watched them struggle in vain. "It looks like you two have been sticking your noses where they don't belong. Allow me to rectify that."

Persephone vanished with the imps and reappeared beside a large pool. It was the Lethe: the Pool of Forgetfulness. Without a second thought, she tossed Pain and Panic inside. They splashed around until their bodies went still, and they started to float aimlessly along the surface of the pool, their eyes glazed over.

_Ugh, this is getting out of hand_. She collapsed onto her knees and groaned. She could feel her veins tighten. "Come on back off. Back off." After a few moments, she took a deep breath and stood. "I'm starting to slip too much, and it's getting harder by the day. I need to get back to the garden." She stood and stumbled a bit, trying to regain her balance. When her legs stopped feeling like rubber, she made her way out of Tartarus.

….

_I can't believe him! I thought he changed._ Minthe sat on the bottom of the steps while she waited for Charon. _All because of that stupid healer._ _I'll show him._ She saw Persephone walking along the shore on the other side of the river. "Hey!" She stood up.

Persephone glanced across the river briefly before continuing on her way.

"Don't you ignore me!" Minthe gripped her hands into fists.

Charon arrived, his thin, skeletal form slowly rowing the boat through the water. Lifting the paddle, he stopped at the dock.

Minthe quickly jumped inside. "Drop me off by the healer."

He shook his head. "Lord Hades told me to lead you out of the Underworld. You're no longer welcome here."

"I don't care what he said." She stomped her foot. "Take me over to the healer now!"

Charon closed his empty eye sockets and started to row in the direction of the exit.

Growling, Minthe jumped out of the boat. She splashed into the Styx, and the souls inside started to drag her under. "Get off of me, you stupid things! I'm not one of you! How dare you touch me!" She pushed and swatted the souls away from her, ignoring the river's effects on her body. Her skin slowly wilted, and her hair turned brown and brittle.

Minthe was finally dragged under. She swung her arms wildly, trying to reach the surface. A long, thick vine pierced through the water and wrapped around her. It pulled her out and dropped her in front of Persephone on the shore. Minthe coughed out water while she cursed under her breath; her appearance returned to its normal, youthful shape. Charon rowed the boat over to them.

Persephone held up her hand. "It's okay, Charon. I'll make sure she gets sent home."

Charon sighed. "Very well. But if Lord Hades asks, I did my job."

She gave him a short nod. "Certainly."

Charon changed the course of the boat to follow the natural current away from the palace and left. Minthe quickly stood up. When she tried to walk, her legs were still shaky, and she landed on her knees in the dirt.

Resting her hands against her hips, Persephone looked at Minthe. "What do you want?"

Minthe lifted her head, her hair whipping out of her face. "Hades, that's what! If you're going to ruin it for me then I'm going to return the favor!"

"Um, okay?" Persephone blinked. "Look, I don't know what kind of tiff you two are going through, but leave me out of it."

"I'd love to, but Hades doesn't feel the same apparently." Minthe scowled at her. She stood and dusted herself off. "He wants you instead of me."

Persephone furrowed her brow. "Don't be ridiculous. Hades doesn't have feelings for me." She glanced away. "He… he can't."

Minthe threw her arms in the air. "Oh, sure. It's always the stupid girls who get everything. You don't even know what you have. Hades is one of the three kings; he has power and wealth."

Persephone rolled her eyes. "Well, even if I was interested in Hades, it wouldn't be for the shallow reasons you just mentioned. And as far as stupid girls getting everything they want, I believe you're proving that statistic to be wrong." She walked away.

Minthe followed Persephone into the garden. She folded her arms. "If you don't stay away from Hades, I'm going to tell Demeter where her precious daughter has been all this time."

Persephone stopped in her tracks. Snapping her fingers, a barrier appeared over the garden entrance. She turned her head slightly. "Excuse me?"

"I knew you looked familiar." Minthe walked over to her. "I just couldn't pinpoint it." She smirked. "Banished from Mt. Olympus. How pathetic could you get?"

Persephone narrowed her eyes. "Look, I've been more than kind to you since you've been here. I have no desire to fight, but if you meddle in my affairs…."

Minthe raised her left hand to slap Persephone. Seeing the action, Persephone ducked and grabbed her left arm. She pulled Minthe's arm behind her back. Taking out a knife, Persephone pressed it against Minthe's neck.

"Come to your senses." She tightened her grip on Minthe. "I don't want to do this."

Minthe kicked Persephone in the face with her left leg. She turned around, her fists raised. "You might as well 'cause I'm not stopping otherwise."

Persephone wiped her face with her hand. Minthe lunged at her. She managed to get a good grip in the goddess' hair and pulled it. Persephone let out a small scream; she grabbed Minthe's wrist and yanked it away from her head. Persephone pushed the nymph away. Minthe landed on the ground, a clump of Persephone's hair in her hand.

"Enough!" Persephone threw her hands to her sides. Her aura fluctuated, knocking Minthe back. A large vine sprouted underneath Minthe and wrapped around her body. It constricted around her until all she could do was gasp for air.

Persephone approached her. "Please try to see some reason." She brought her face close to Minthe's. "There is nothing going on between Hades and I." Waving her hand, she loosened the vine. "Do you understand?"

Minthe spat at her. "You're lying! He wouldn't have done this to me if there wasn't!"

Persephone sighed. Turning her back to Minthe, she snapped her fingers and made the vine disappear. Minthe fell to the ground and rubbed her neck.

"You're free to believe what you want, but picking a fight with me isn't going to solve anything." Persephone looked at her from the corner of her eye. "Just go home." She walked away.

Minthe let out a frustrated yell. Just as Persephone was about to drop the barrier, Minthe charged at her and leapt onto her back. Persephone lost her balance and fell face-forward into a large rock. Her forehead collided with the narrower edge of the rock, sending a tremor through her skull. She rolled off to the side, her vision blacking out.

Minthe climbed off of her. She smirked. "You can hide it all you want, but I've seen the way you both look at each other. And if I can't have my happy ending, no one will."

She was met with silence. Persephone remained still on the ground, her head facing away from her. Frowning, Minthe walked around Persephone's body and knelt down.

"Hello, are you listening to me?" Minthe growled when she heard no response.

She grabbed Persephone by her hair and forced the goddess to face her. Persephone's eyes were hollow and unfocused, and her mouth was slightly ajar. A small trail of drool trickled down her chin.

"Stay away from Hades, or I'll follow through with my threat." Minthe brought her face closer to hers. "Do I make myself clear?"

The pupils in Persephone's eyes dilated, a loud hiss erupting from her lips. She lunged at Minthe and bit down on her ear. Minthe felt Persephone's teeth pierce and pull away at her skin. She screamed.

"Get off me!" Minthe felt Persephone's hands grip roughly onto her shoulders. "Get off me!" She put her right palm on Persephone's face and pushed her back.

Her thumb got too close to the goddess' mouth. Persephone bit down on it, breaking the bone with her teeth.

"Aaaaah! Stop! No!" Raising her left hand, Minthe slapped Persephone across the face.

Persephone let out a haggard gasp. She fell to the side, her nails digging into Minthe's skin and ripping off her right breast.

"Aaaah!" Minthe scrambled to get away.

There were four claw marks stretched across the right side of her chest; blood poured from the wound. Minthe fell on her back, screeching in pain. She shakily raised her left hand, seeing a red soaked nub where her thumb used to be. A piece of the bone jutted out, and blood oozed down onto the rest of her hand. Feeling a painful sting in her head, Minthe brought her left hand to her ear. Half of it was chewed off.

Whimpering, Minthe stared at Persephone, who now had blood dripping from her mouth. Persephone's head quickly snapped up, her hollow eyes meeting Minthe's gaze. She hissed again, showing her bloodstained teeth, and slowly crawled over to Minthe.

Minthe turned around and tried to walk out of the garden, but was met with a barrier. "What? Where did this come from?" Hearing Persephone get closer, she cried. "Someone help! Hades! You stupid imps! Help me!" She banged against the barrier.

It repelled her, sending her flying into a deeper part of the garden. She landed on the ground, her back skidding across the dirt. She groaned and slowly sat up. The first thing Minthe's vision focused on was Persephone heading toward her.

….

_Maybe I should just talk to Persephone._ Hades rested his head against his hand. _But what do I say?_ _I'll… I'll… just tell her. Persephone… I love you. Or maybe I should just propose right there? No, that might be too forward. Ugh, I'll figure it out when I get there._

Hades left the throne room and headed for Persephone's garden. As he neared closer, he felt his heartbeat quicken. He mentally smacked himself; why was he acting like some love struck teenager? There was nothing to be nervous about. He reached the entrance and noticed a translucent haze blocking his way.

"Did Persephone put this barrier up?" Hades put a hand on it. "What for?" He frowned. "Well, it shouldn't be too difficult for me to break through."

Hades struck the barrier with a large blast of energy. However, instead of fading, the barrier changed to glass. He stared at his reflection briefly before the barrier returned to its translucent form.

_Strange._ Narrowing his eyes, Hades noticed that he only managed to make a small dent in the barrier; there was a hole big enough for him to fit through. "I guess Persephone's stronger than she appears." He grinned to himself. "Looks like she's destined to be my queen after all."

Hades stepped through the hole. He glanced around, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. A high-pitched scream echoed through the air. The way it vibrated off the cavern walls made it sound like it was coming from behind him. He quickly turned around, but only saw the shore and the river Styx.

He shrugged to himself. "Just another soul screaming for help." He turned back around and paused.

The garden was gone. In its place was a dark, empty field surrounded by dying trees. He took a few steps back and glanced behind him. The barrier leading to the rest of the Underworld disappeared. Instead, there was just a solid wall of rock.

_What the…?_ Hades continued to look around. _The atmosphere seems the same, but this can't be the Underworld._ _I know that place like the back of my flame. What happened to the garden and Persephone herself for that matter? _He glanced behind himself one last time. He spotted shadows lurking in the distance but couldn't make out what they were. "Okay— maybe I'll just teleport back to the Underworld." He mentally willed himself to teleport like he normally did, but nothing happened. He tried it again; no, he was still in the same spot. _This doesn't make any sense. Why can't I go back?_ He sighed. "Guess I'll explore a little."

Hades made his way through the empty field. The entire place was silent with no sign of life anywhere. The sky was dark and completely cloudless. He reached the border of leafless trees; they branched out into a very large forest. He heard cawing in the distance and turned. There was a group of crows pecking at what seemed to be a man's body. A lot of his skin was missing, and it was clear he was already dead.

_Bad day for that guy._ Hades was about to leave when the crows noticed him. They flocked over and tried to peck at his arms and face. Raising his hand, he created a fireball and blasted them away. The crows dropped to the ground one by one, the flames still eating away at their corpses. "Well, that was annoying."

Hades continued on his way. Every now and then, he would hear the wind blow through the trees almost sounding like a faint howl. Glancing around, he noticed there were more shadowy figures in the area than before.

_Okay, it definitely feels like I'm being watched._ Hades heard a raspy, breathing sound behind him. _And followed…._

"Gotcha!"

A loud, ear-deafening bang rang through the air and hit something behind Hades. He swiftly turned around and saw a body fall to the ground. He narrowed his eyes. Whoever it was, they were already dead.

"I don't think so!"

Hades looked in the direction of the voice and spotted a woman. She had her weapon pointed at another figure in the distance. Narrowing his eyes, he realized she was holding a gun. He recalled the Fates mentioning it briefly during one of their various meetings. The woman shot the bullet, and another person fell to the ground, dead.

He shifted his gaze from the corpses to the woman. "Well, aren't you quick on your feet?"

The woman turned and stepped back, her eyes glancing over Hades' form. She raised her gun and pointed it at his face. "What are you?"

Hades looked the woman up and down. She had auburn hair that was tied back in a ponytail. He raised an eyebrow at her clothes. She was wearing a red vest, and a pair of red shorts that were cut so high they would've left very little to his imagination if she hadn't been wearing another article of black clothing underneath them. Luckily, she left plenty of fair skin exposed on her legs for him to admire.

The woman clicked her gun, drawing Hades out of his thoughts. She grazed her finger over the trigger. "Answer the question."

"Hey, babe, I'm not the one who came here firing that little weapon of yours." Hades' skin tinged orange. "So why don't you drop it right now before you end up like the two of them?" He gestured to the corpses.

The woman narrowed her eyes. "Forget it. I'm not backing down to some creepy bio-weapon like you."

Hades raised an eyebrow. "Bio-what?" He gave a half chuckle. "I'm a god. Name's Hades, Lord of the Dead." He formed two fireballs in his hands.

She let out a small gasp. Straightening her posture, she held both of her hands in the air. "Alright, you win." She let the gun fall from her grip.

When the woman saw Hades' hands extinguish, she dropped down and caught her gun before it hit the ground. Lying on her side, she fired a bullet straight at Hades, but he disappeared in a puff of smoke before it hit him.

"What?" The woman quickly scrambled to her feet. She held out her gun, ready to pull the trigger. Her eyes darted in every direction, but she didn't spot Hades anywhere. "How did…?"

The woman was suddenly lifted into the air by an invisible force. Two smoky rings appeared around her torso and legs, tying her limps down. Struggling, she dropped her gun on the grass.

Hades appeared behind the woman. He picked up the gun and lightly tossed in his hand. "Now, babe, how about we start over…." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "And you give me the respect I deserve by telling me your name."

The woman tried to pull away, but Hades held her in place. She sighed. "I'm Claire Redfield."

Hades tapped his chin with his finger while glancing Claire over once more. "Hmm, I think I'll call you Little Red. You like that don't you, babe? Of course you do." He stepped away from her. "And I'll make a deal with you. Promise to trust me, and I'll let you have your weapon back." He dangled the gun over her head.

Claire pursed her lips. She stared at Hades briefly before looking away. "Fine."

Hades snapped his fingers, breaking Claire free of her bonds. He dropped the gun in her hands. "See how easy that was, Little Red?" He folded his arms and glanced around. "Now how about you tell me what's going on here?"

She furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"

"Hey, one second I was walking through the Underworld, and the next, I end up here." Hades still felt the eerie feeling of being watched. A dull, moaning sound filled the air.

Turning around, Claire gasped. "Damn. More of them are gathering."

Hades looked in the direction Claire was facing. A horde of people was slowly heading toward them. He stared at them. Their pupil-less eyes were hollow, and their skin was pale and smeared with dried blood. Some had chunks of flesh missing from their bodies, and they looked like they hadn't changed their clothes in weeks.

_Wait, these people are dead, but they're not souls. They look like the corpses that were left behind._ Hades shifted his eyes at all the corpses coming toward them, their hands reaching out. _Why is the dead walking around in the open like this?_

Claire pulled the trigger of her gun and struck one of the corpses straight in the head. Blood splattered from its skull, and it fell to the ground. She glanced behind herself. "Are you going to just stand there, or are you going to help me?"

Hades scoffed. "I'm immortal. What do I have to be worried about? But if it'll make you feel better, Little Red, I guess I could help. You may want to duck."

Seeing his hands, Claire's eyes slightly widened. She quickly crouched down. Hades extended his arms forward and shot a wave of fire that engulfed the corpses. Shrieks and gurgled howls echoed out of the flames. When the noises stopped, he dropped his hands. Claire stood up and gasped. All the corpses had been reduced to smoldering piles of ash. The only movement that could be found was the flickering of the small fires left over from the attack.

Hades grinned. "Bada boom."

Claire shook her head. "I don't believe this."

He rolled his eyes. "What part of _I'm a god_ didn't you understand?"

"But there's no…." Claire heard more moaning in the distance. "More of them are showing up." She pointed her gun at Hades and slowly walked away from him. "Look, I don't know or care what you are, but I need to get out of here." She turned and ran in the opposite direction, but Hades reappeared in front of her. "Come on, what gives? Move!"

Hades chuckled and waved at finger at her. "Tsk, tsk, tsk, Little Red, I don't think you understood me earlier." He grinned. "I still don't know where I am. And I—" Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pinched her cheek with his free hand. "Have chosen you to be my personal tour guide. Where you go, I go. Got the concept?"

Claire stared at him before her gaze shifted to the shadows around them. She sighed. "Fine. But not here, we need to go somewhere safe."

He scoffed. "What for? I can easily take care of any interruptions."

She pulled away from him and narrowed her eyes. "Well I'm not staying here. So if you want your precious information then you'd better keep up." She walked around him and continued down the path.

Hades watched her before following. "After you." He glanced back at the lurking shadows. _First, I'll get the information I need from her, and then I'll search for Persephone. Should be simple enough._


	3. Tea Time

Chapter Two:

-Tea Time-

* * *

_ Wha… what happened?_ Persephone groaned. She shifted her body and realized she was lying on the ground. Lifting her head slightly, she felt a sharp pain and quickly put her hands to her forehead. Her body folded into a fetal position. "Augh, it hurts."

Taking a deep breath, she felt the pain subside. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw the sun shining back at her; she sat up and rubbed her face.

"Ooh, the nerve of that nymph." Persephone glanced around. "If I ever get my hands on her, I'll…." She blinked. "Wait, this isn't my garden. I'm in a forest." She entangled her fingers in her hair. "Damn it! I must have run above ground." That was the downside of her condition. Every time she changed, she slipped into unconsciousness and couldn't remember a thing once she woke up.

_ "We __k__now there's something wrong with you."_

Persephone looked up but saw no one.

_ "Hades is just too blind to see it."_

_ That sounds like Pain and Panic_. She frowned. "Are you two at it again? Next time I'll throw you both into the flesh eating pool! I promise!"

Turning around, Persephone saw a rabbit sitting on a branch in front of her. The rabbit had magenta colored fur and was rather chubby; it stared up at her with narrowed, yellow eyes.

"Your disguises can't fool me, Pain!" She reached out to grab him.

Pain hopped out of the way and landed on the ground.

"Get back here!" She chased after him.

She ran through the forest, ignoring the branches that tore at her dress. Pain hopped over a large pile of brown leaves; he stopped and sat behind it.

Pushing through a bush, she spotted Pain. "There you are, you stupid imp."

She ran toward him, but the moment her foot touched the pile, she fell straight through the leaves and plummeted into a dark pit. She screamed, stray leaves falling all around her. Pain looked down at her from the hole, which slowly shrunk until it closed and trapped her within the dark abyss.

_ What's going on? Is this a trick?_ Persephone prepared herself for some kind of impact, but it never came. _How deep is this hole?_

_ "You know, babe, curiosity killed the cat."_

"Hades?" Her eyes darted around, but she didn't see him.

_ "One thing you'll learn, Sephy, is that as the King of the Gods, I always get what I want."_

"Zeus?" She cringed. "Where are you? Show yourself!"

_ "It doesn't matter who you were, you are my daughter now, and you shall respect and obey me in the way I deserve!"_

"Oh, you're Demeter now?" Persephone glared at the black abyss surrounding her. "Enough with your games!"

_ "Fret no more, child,_

_ But listen well_

_ Lest you desire to fail."_

Three old, grainy voices echoed around Persephone, but there still was no face to put to them.

_ Fail? What are they talking about?_ She frowned. "Fine, have it your way. I'm listening."

A small orb of light appeared; it circled around her before stopping in front of her face. The light faded, revealing an eyeball. Focusing on her, the eye went blood-shot, and the pupil narrowed into a slit. The whole eye increased in size until it was looming over her.

_ "Two worlds will collide,_

_ And you must pick a side."_

Multiple floating eyes came forth from the darkness. They were different sizes and colors, and all of them stared at Persephone while she continued to fall.

_ "For your soul and body have split,_

_ But to which will you submit?"_

Persephone covered her face with her hands. _What's going on? What is all of this?_

_ "The human or the monster?_

_ Your journey shall reveal the answer._

_ So venture forth, child_

_ Your path has been set_

_ The card you hold is wild_

_ Choose wisely and don't forget."_

The eyes circling Persephone faded away, and she landed on something solid. Looking down, she saw that it was a wood floor. However, the floor was only visible in the spot she was sitting on. The dark abyss stretched on beyond her with no sign of escape, and without the voices, the area fell into a deadly silence.

She looked around. "Hello? He-llo! Voices, are you there?" She shivered. "Okay, this is starting to get creepy." She hugged her arms around herself. "At least I've stopped falling, but where am I?"

A tiny flame appeared a few steps away from her. Floating in the air, it softly crackled in the silence.

_ Where did that come from?_ Persephone stood up. She reached out her hand, making the flame move away from her. "Hey, come back."

The flame stopped. It flew over to her, and then returned to its original spot. It hopped back and forth, swirled around her, and then hovered in front of her face again.

"Oh, I see. You want me to follow you." Persephone took a step forward before pausing. _Wait, why am I talking to a fireball?_ She blinked. _Whom am I kidding? This couldn't get any weirder._ She walked over to the flame. "Now which way do we go?"

The flame bounced away, revealing new spots of light on the floor. Persephone started to follow it. Her foot met a sudden edge, and she tripped forward. She frantically waved her arms backward, trying to regain her balance, and fell back on her behind.

Persephone sighed. "These spots of light are platforms. Guess I'll have to do this a different way." She dissipated into a flurry of flower petals and followed the flame in the air. It wasn't long until she reached a large door. The flame dispersed in front of it. _This must be what it wanted to show me._ She returned to her normal form. Looking up at the door, she gasped. "Charon?"

His skeletal body was embedded into the door. Persephone approached him and placed her hand on his jaw.

"Charon?" She furrowed her brow. "Are you alright?"

His head moved slightly. "I would be if you stopped touching me."

She drew her hand back. "Sorry. How did you get stuck like this?"

"I've always been here." He narrowed his eye sockets. "Maybe you weren't paying attention."

She frowned. "What's going on? Are we even in the Underworld anymore?"

"Why don't you see for yourself?" Charon closed his sockets.

The door slowly creaked open; Persephone peered inside and saw that it led to a big, dark room. The only thing she could make out was a long table sitting in the center; there were chairs aligned all around it.

"Well… isn't this a pleasant surprise?"

_ It can't be._ Her eyes widened. Following the sound of the voice, she saw a figure sitting at the far opposite end of the table.

Persephone felt an unknown force pull her into the room, and the door shut behind her. A set of candles that were sitting in the middle of the table lit aflame. It illuminated the table with an orange glow, but the rest of the room remained dark. Her gaze fell upon the figure; with the extra lightning, she could tell it was a man. Her heart skipped a beat, and she took a step back.

The man lifted his head to face her. His black suit blended most of his body into the shadows and made his pale skin and blond hair give him a ghost-like appearance. Persephone couldn't see his eyes, for he was wearing a pair of sunglasses. However, it still felt like his gaze was piercing through hers and right into her soul.

"Wesker?" Persephone's lip trembled, her voice barely above a whisper. "How are you… what are you doing here?"

"Interesting." Wesker faintly raised one eyebrow. "After so many tests, you could barely speak. You've made progress." He clasped his gloved hands together. "And it's quite fortunate that you've returned to me."

"You wish. I'll never go back to you." She glared at him. "Not after what you did to me, you monster!"

Wesker jumped up from his chair and swooped over to Persephone in less than a second. He grabbed her by the neck and slammed her into the wall behind her. Letting out a loud gasp, she struggled against his grip, but she couldn't pry his hand off of her. She swiped at his face, knocking his glasses to the floor, and found herself staring into two yellowish-red slit eyes.

"I'm using all of my strength, and yet I cannot feel your bones and flesh crushing underneath my grip." With his free hand, Wesker took out a knife and brought it to Persephone's face. He pressed it into her right cheek, but the blade merely bent until it snapped in half. "Your skin is impenetrable, and your body has retained a human shape without any deformities. One could be fooled to think you were still alive. How is this?"

Persephone pulled at his wrist. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Have you forgotten that I created you?" Wesker lifted her off of the floor. "You had just as many flaws as your predecessors, and I have not made any recent alterations since that meddling Chris Redfield separated us." He tightened his grip. "Now what has caused this change in you?"

"Ambrosia." She whispered. "I was given Ambrosia."

Wesker narrowed his eyes. "What is this substance?"

A tear rolled down her cheek. "I don't know. It's the food of the gods."

"Well, it seems to have stabilized the T and G viruses inside of you." He released her.

She slid to the floor and held her neck.

Wesker made a few steps to the table before pausing. "I could have left you to rot, you know, but instead I saved you."

"You've corrupted me." Persephone brought herself to her knees. "I can't touch anyone. I can't be near anyone without wanting to kill them."

"Murder? Is that all that upsets you?" He let out a small laugh. "Don't you realize what you have?" He took Persephone by the arm and brought her in front of a mirror. "Look at yourself. You are stronger, faster, and more agile. All of your senses have been heightened."

She stared at her reflection. _Sometimes I don't even recognize myself anymore_. Her hair was in a messy bun with strands sticking out wildly, and her skin, it was so perfect and flawless. Even the shape of her face and the contours of her body were something worthy of a goddess. _Is that what I am?_ She frowned. She could see past the reflection, the monster that lurked just below the surface. She could feel it coursing through her veins.

Wesker stood behind her. "You do realize this is a one in a million chance? You were born with the right blood type. I'm sure you remember the usual fate when someone comes in contract with one of the viruses."

A flashback appeared in Persephone's mind; she saw hordes of zombies feeding upon their innocent victims. She closed her eyes, the helpless screams filling her ears.

"Instead of mourning your death, you should be celebrating your birth. Or rather un-birth." Wesker gently pulled back some of her hair that was covering her shoulder. On the very back where her neck and shoulder met was a mark. It read: _T-201_. A tiny smile graced his lips. "You are Persephone: Destroyer of Light. The strongest Tyrant to date."

_ Well, you've gotten the tyrant part right._ Persephone lowered her head.

"And now there is only one step left." He grabbed her arm. "I need a sample of your blood."

She looked at him. "What?"

"Do not believe that I created you for the purpose of being a Good Samaritan." Wesker bent down and picked up his sunglasses. "If I am to be a god among men, it would be rather unfitting to have an experiment that's stronger than I am. Wouldn't you agree?" He put his sunglasses back on.

"What do you mean?" Persephone shied away from him.

"That extra ingredient has made you invincible." Wesker narrowed his eyes. "Immortal even. That is a power that should be mine." He snatched her by the straps of her dress and pulled her close to him.

Her face was inches from his. She trembled, feeling his eyes pierce through hers again.

Wesker smirked. "And you're going to give it to me."

….

Hades followed Claire to an abandoned house. He amusingly watched as she carefully examined their surroundings for anything unexpected, and every now and then she'd glance back at him with narrowed eyes. _The inevitable sad life of a mortal: forever looking over their shoulder in fear of their final demise. I don't know how they survive through it._

Claire glanced around before pointing ahead. "We should be safe here."

Hades sighed and folded his arms. "So do you mind telling me where I am now?"

Claire put a finger to her lips. She opened the door and checked inside. Seeing the coast was clear, she motioned for Hades to follow her, and they made their way into the kitchen. Hades positioned himself against the wall while Claire found a light switch and turned it on. The room was fairly small with no windows, and it looked like it hadn't been used in a while. There was nothing but dust and cobwebs everywhere.

Claire moved to the other side of the room, allowing the large table in the center to serve as a barrier between her and Hades. She pointed her gun at him. "Now enough of your questions. You told me to trust you, but I'm still not convinced."

Hades narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure you want to try that again, babe?"

She paused, her arms dropping slightly. Looking away, she bit her lip and groaned in frustration then returned to her defensive stance. "I'll chance it. You told me to trust you, but I don't see why I should. Just considering your appearance…." She glanced him over. "And your abilities. How can I not think you're one of them?"

He rolled his eyes. "Hey, I told you before. I'm a…."

She glared at him. "Yeah, I know, a god. That's what they all say, or are you just another experiment?"

The flames on Hades' head rippled and spread along the rest of his body. "Look, you little…." He took a deep breath and calmed himself down before forcing a smile. "I'm the Lord of Underworld; you've heard of me, haven't you, Little Red? Most mortals have, which is why they're too afraid to speak my name." He saw Claire furrow her brow. "Still not clear yet? How about Poseidon and Zeus?" He frowned. "They're usually the more popular sons of Cronus."

Claire blinked and stepped back. "Well, sure I've heard of them like most people who've gone to school. My guess would be that you're just some nutso who's convinced himself he's a god from an ancient myth."

Hades sighed deeply while rubbing his forehead. "Okay, Little Red, let's try it this way." He looked at her. "If I really was one of those Bio-whatevers, would I be able to do this?" He created a fireball in his hand.

She nodded. "Yes, actually."

He raised an eyebrow. "Right…. How about this?" He teleported from his spot by the wall and reappeared behind her.

Startled, Claire quickly turned around and retreated back. "Uh, I… I've seen at least one person do that."

"Really, only one? I must be a special case then." Hades snapped his fingers and Claire's gun vanished from her hands. "Still confused?"

She gasped and ran behind the table. "Alright, stop it; you're freaking me out!"

He shrugged. "Why? You were so confident in what I was in the forest. I mean, come on, is being a god really that hard to believe? In fact—" He placed a hand to his chin and looked her up and down. "That outfit of yours is nice and all, but it's way too filthy from you running around outside. Let's put you in something more suitable for my presence."

Waving his hand, colorful swirls circled around Claire. In a flash, she was wearing a red, Grecian dress. It fit rather tight and was pinned up with one strap across her right shoulder. Her ponytail had been undone, and her hair now rested down to her mid-back.

Hades let out a throaty chuckle and smirked. "Oh yes, much better."

She gasped, her gaze shifting from herself to Hades. "I… you… how did… how did you that?"

He pointed his finger at Claire, causing her to speak involuntarily.

"Geez Louise, how many times do I have to tell you? I'm a god, not a hard concept to follow. Think you'd connect the dots by now; you must not be the brightest one, Little Red. Of course, you mortals set your standards pretty low to begin with." Claire clamped her hands over her mouth and continued to stare at him.

He folded his arms. "Enough evidence for you, or do I have to keep going?"

Claire held up her hands. "No, no more." She sat down in a chair that was sitting beside the table and took a deep breath. "Okay, let's say I believe you and you really are the Greek god, Hades. Why are you here?"

"Good question." Hades shook his head. "It's like I told you before, I was back in the Underworld, and then, boom, all of a sudden I'm here. Speaking of, you still never answered my question. Where is _here_, exactly?"

She met his gaze. "We're in the Arklay Mountains just outside of Raccoon City. Plus you're a long way from Greece; this country is the United States. You're pretty much on the other side of the world."

"Interesting, I've never heard of your country or this city-state for that matter." Hades leaned against the wall. "And what did you mean earlier when you said ancient myth?"

"Well, the original Greek civilizations that the mythologies of you and the other gods came from haven't been around for two thousand years or more." Thinking for a minute, she paused. "Right now, it should be 1998 C.E."

"1998?" His eyes widened slightly. "That can't be it; the year's 1279."

Claire nodded to herself. "That would be a little over three thousand years ago to be exact."

He let the information soak in before he groaned, his flames flaring all around him. "Great! You know this is just perfect! Here I was about to confess my feelings to the one goddess I've ever cared about, and I end up being hurtled into the future." He rubbed his temples with his fingers. "Where's Pain and Panic when I need them?"

She put her hands on her hips. "But if you're a god, can't you just send yourself back home?"

He glanced at her. "A brilliant idea, Little Red, except I already tried that. Besides, I don't know how I got here in the first place."

"Do you remember what happened before you came here?" She stood up.

Hades folded his arms. "I was heading into Persephone's garden, but there was a barrier in the way. I broke it down somewhat, and when I went through, I was in the forest."

"Persephone?" Claire raised an eyebrow. "You mean the girl you kidnapped, raped, and forced to marry you?"

"Excuse me?" He narrowed his eyes.

"That's the myth about you and Persephone." She shrugged. "Everyone knows it."

Hades rolled his eyes. "Well, obviously something got lost in translation after three thousand years. That aside…." Sighing, he glanced away. _The barrier was in front of Persephone's garden. What if she's out here too?_

She noticed his expression. "Is something wrong?"

He shook his head. "Nothing, Little Red. In the mean time, I need to figure out a way to get out of this place."

She walked over to him. "Well, while you're at it, can I have my clothes and items back now?"

Hades wagged his finger at her. "Is that anyway to address a god? You have to do better than that, babe."

Claire sighed. "May I please have my clothes and items back, Hades?"

"_Lord_ Hades." He pinched her cheek. "And how about a smile this time?"

She rubbed her face before gritting her teeth and smiling. "May I please have my clothes and items back, Lord Hades?"

Snapping his fingers, her belongings appeared in the air and floated next to him. She went to grab them, but he nudged her back. "Ah, ah, ah, I believe a thanks are in order to moi, your absolute oneness. Now what do you say?"

Claire resisted the urge to scream and forced the biggest smile she could muster. "Thank you, Lord Hades, your absolute oneness."

"See that wasn't so hard, was it, Little Red?" Snapping his fingers, Claire's clothing, weapons, and side pouch reappeared on her.

Claire gave Hades a look that read, _I wish I could shoot you if I could get away with it_. She checked the items in her side pouch. "Just out of curiosity, _Lord Hades_, is there some particular reason you decided to single me out as your personal guide?"

Hades shrugged. "You're the only living mortal I've seen so far." He smirked. "Besides, you're just too much fun to mess with."

She scoffed. "Lucky me."

A loud crash echoed outside of the kitchen door.

Claire turned and whispered, "What was that?"

The doorknob slowly turned, and she raised her gun. The door creaked open, but only silence followed. Furrowing her brow, she stepped forward. Still, nothing. She took another step, and the door burst open, the hinges snapping clean off. Out from the shadows jumped a large, green-scaled creature. Claire shot it in the chest, knocking it down. The creature fell onto its back and squirmed on the floor.

Hades looked at the creature. Aside from its skin, it had two long arms equipped with large, sharp claws. He raised an eyebrow. "Yeesh, what are these things?"

"Hunters." Claire heard another crash come from outside of the kitchen. "And it sounds like there's more of them." She looked back at Hades. "We have to get out of here."

He shrugged. "What for? I can get rid of them easy."

The Hunter Claire shot stood back up. It jumped at Hades, but he blasted it to the floor with a fireball.

He looked at her. "See, Little Red. No big deal."

Sparks from the attack caught fire on the floor and quickly spread onto the wall.

Claire stepped back, frowning. "Yeah, except you set the room on fire."

Hades turned and realized the flames were engulfing the wall. The fire quickly licked its way up and onto the ceiling. Another Hunter ran into the kitchen and jumped in between Claire and Hades. Claire shot it in the shoulder, making it turn around. It jumped and tried to slash her head off. She rolled out of the way and cut her right arm against the debris from the broken door. Her gun slipped from her hands and slid into the fire.

The Hunter raised its claws to slice at her again, but was struck dead by another one of Hades' fireballs. More sparks caught fire onto the carpet in the other room, lighting the rest of the house ablaze. Hades quickly made his way over to Claire. She was his only source of information; he couldn't have her dying too soon. Hearing a screeching sound, he paused. A third Hunter caught his eye, and he teleported away before it could hit him.

….

Claire coughed, the smoke from the flames filling the room. She glanced across the tiled floor and saw her gun melting in the intense heat. "Lord Hades?" Looking up, she saw the third Hunter standing in his place.

Hearing her voice, the Hunter turned and let out a screech before leaping for her. A gunshot rang through the air. The Hunter's head exploded into blood and slime and splattered all over the room. Its headless body fell into the flames and burned.

"Claire!"

Her eyes widened. _That voice._ She looked up. A man was standing over her; he had short, dark hair and was wearing a S.T.A.R.S. uniform. "Chris?"

"Hurry!" Chris held out his hand. "This whole place is going to come down on us any second!"

Claire took his hand. They quickly rushed out of the kitchen and to the front door. Ash and sparks fell all around them. She shielded her eyes with her uninjured arm. As soon as they were outside, the building collapsed behind them.

She caught her breath. "What are you doing here?"

"I was about to say the same thing, but I'm glad I found you in time." Chris noticed her arm. He reached into his bag and pulled out a small canister. "Take this. It's First-Aid spray."

Claire took the canister. "Thank you." She glanced around. "Wait, you didn't see anyone else in the house?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"There was someone else with me." Claire stood up. "Lord Hades?"

"That's my name, babe. Don't wear it out." Hades appeared in front of her.

Claire sighed before glaring at him. "Where were you!"

Hades held his hands up. "Hey, calm down, Little Red. I was about to come back and save you before…." He turned to point at Chris, but was met with Chris' magnum gun in his face.

"Claire, stay back!" Chris grazed his finger over the trigger. "I'll take care of this thing."

She rushed in between them. "No, Chris; it's okay. Hades is an... ally, sort of." She looked at Hades. "This is my older brother."

Chris furrowed his brow. "Claire, look at it. It's just another one of those Tyrants."

Hades' skin tinged orange. "Excuse me. This _thing_ has a name." He snatched the magnum away from Chris and lit it on fire, making it explode in his hand.

Chris pulled out a knife and swiped at him; the blade shattered the second it hit Hades' arm. Frowning, Hades easily flicked Chris onto the ground.

"What?" Chris' eyes widened. "What are you?

Hades' skin returned to its normal shade, and he sneered down at Chris. "Sorry, babe, but I'm done giving explanations for today." He glanced at Claire. "Little Red, why don't you stay here with your brother? I'll just leave."

Claire knelt beside Chris. "But I thought you needed help."

"I've gotten information; I'll do just fine on my own." Hades grinned. "I mean, come on, I'm a god. What do I have to be worried about?"

Claire watched Hades leave; she wasn't sure what to make of the god. In the myths, she read in school, he was never a bad guy. While he did have a bit of a temper and no respect for personal space, he didn't seem to be up to anything.

"Forget that thing, Claire. Come on, let's go find Jill." Chris put a hand on her shoulder.

_ But what I don't understand is why? Of all things I could run into, I find a god. It's too strange to write off as a random event. There has to be a reason._ Claire turned around. "Yeah… but I need to ask you something first."

Chris brought himself to his feet before holding out his hand. "What is it?"

She took his hand and stood up. "How did you get here?"

….

Persephone sat at the table and watched Wesker type something into his communication device. If she weren't so shaken up, she would have laughed. It had been a very long time since she had seen modern technology.

_ So this means I'm in the future? But where?_ She lowered her gaze to the floor.

"Our transportation will be here in ten minutes." Wesker sat down. "You can relax for now."

"Thanks, but I don't need your permission." Persephone examined the room; the only way out was the door she came through. _Maybe I can escape that way, but where will I go? That area was nothing but an endless abyss. _She sighed. "So, where are we exactly?"

"Inside of the Arklay Mansion within the Mountains." She saw Wesker's eyebrows narrow. "However, I would advise against any sudden actions. What lies outside this room is less than friendly."

She gasped. "The Mountains? That means we're in Raccoon City, but I thought…."

"Yes. This is a curious situation, isn't it? However, it's also a chance of opportunity, specifically for you." Wesker clasped his hands together. "Your drastic changes have increased your value beyond a mere killing machine. Once I get your blood, I'm curious to see just how strong you really are. I offer you a position to work for me. You'll simply carry out missions around the world and retrieve specific items I need to further my plans. If you're successful, you'll live, but if not, your demise will be of your own doing."

Persephone stood and glared at him. "Never. I'd rather die again than collaborate with you."

Wesker frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that, but don't be naïve enough to think that this will earn your freedom. Instead, I'll simply place you back on the operating table to be dissected."

"Except you've forgotten something, Wesker. I'm not the same little girl you found in the gutter." She snapped her fingers.

Vines shot out from the floor; wrapping around Wesker's body, they hung him in the air. He tried to rip the vines off, but as he did, more vines sprouted from the damaged ones. They tangled around his arms and pinned him down. Wesker lurched forward, the vines snapping from his immense speed. Holding up her hands, she blocked him with a barrier. He bounced off of it and slammed into the far back wall.

Persephone ran for the door and opened it. However, instead of the endless abyss, she was met with a horde of zombies that had gathered at the entrance of the room. She screamed at the sight of them. They grabbed and pulled on her arms and shoulders, and eventually dragged her out into a long, dark hallway. The zombies' teeth and nails couldn't penetrate her skin, but their mere presence was enough to make her heart race. She kicked her legs and swatted her hands in every direction. Finally, she managed to push some of them aside. She stumbled away, trying to regain her balance, and summoned a few vines to hold the zombies at bay.

She ran as fast as her feet would let her. _Where do I go from here? I have to get out of this mansion before Wesker catches me. Maybe there's a window or balcony I can escape from._

She turned several corners only to run into more zombies and pushed them away from her. One of them managed to get its hands tangled in her hair, but she dissipated into flower petals and floated down the hall until she came across a window. She reformed herself before looking outside; she was on the second floor.

_ That's not going to stop me._ Persephone jumped through the window and roughly landed in the vast courtyard below, shards of glass falling all around her. Groaning, she stood up and examined her surroundings. It was night, making it difficult to see very far. _There has to be some place for me to hide._

She ran through the courtyard, passing several graves and zombies; it wasn't long before she reached the forest. In the distance, she could hear howling and felt her veins run cold. Growling soon followed, and it was growing louder. Stepping deeper into the forest, she heard multiple footsteps approaching her. Before she could take another step, a pack of dogs stepped out from the shadows and surrounded her. Their flesh was ripped and bloody, and their eyes were glazed over.

_ No… please…._ Persephone froze in place; the dogs continued to growl and bare their fangs. "Nice doggies. You don't want to eat me. Please, don't."

The dogs pounced at her, but she managed to dodge them and ran deeper into the forest. One of the dogs caught up to her and sank its teeth into her sandal. She tripped and fell over, allowing the rest of the pack to gang up on her. Screaming, she shot out vines from all sides and ripped the dogs away, roughly tossing them into nearby trees and rocks. She kicked the last dog off, but it managed to take her sandal with it. Fading into flower petals, she fled from the area.

_ Hopefully they'll lose my trail. _She came across a small cave at the base of a hill. _Maybe I can rest there._

Persephone headed inside, reformed herself, and explored the cave. It was dark and covered with moss, but she didn't see anything that would try to jump out at her. She slumped down to the ground and hugged her arms around her knees.

_ I don't understand. How did I get here, and how am I going to get back to the Underworld? _She sighed. _I'll worry about that later. For now,__I can't let Wesker find me again_. She closed her eyes.

….

Hades headed in the direction of the city. From where he was, he could see very tall buildings towering over the surrounding forest. He nodded to himself. Sure this place was a bit strange, but there was nothing to worry about. He just had to plan it out. So far Little Red told him where he was and, more specifically, _when_ he was. _Now, I'll do a little exploring, and see if Persephone is here. I hope not. Either way, I'll find a way out of this place._


	4. Everyone's Dead Here

Chapter Three:

-Everyone's Dead Here-

* * *

The deadly silence of the Arklay Forest paled in comparison to Raccoon City. The danger there had seemed like a little bump in the night, but here, chaos ruled. Crashing, exploding, screaming, crying, running, shooting, this place had it all. Hades sat on top of what he assumed was the advanced form of a chariot and watched the show before him.

Hordes of undead swarmed the streets and hunted down the living; the city itself was in shambles. The surrounding buildings were completely dilapidated, and debris covered the streets. Blood was smeared on everything from walls to broken windows to even laying in festering pools on the hard, black ground. More of those strange chariots scattered the area, blocking off major streets and alleyways. Some of them were engulfed in flames and had a strange smell emitting from them.

_ Kind of smells like oil. Hmm, interesting invention._ Hades materialized a martini in his hand, his attention focused on a woman screaming hysterically for help.

A group of zombies had closed in on her, but she was without a weapon. She tried to push them away, but to no avail. A fairly large chariot skidded across the ground from the opposite street and ran straight over the woman and the zombies. It slammed into the wall of the building behind her, and the engine ignited from the impact. All that was left of the woman was a pool of blood spilling from underneath the chariot. The side door opened, allowing its zombified driver to flop out of the seat. The driver proceeded to wander aimlessly; its body caught a blaze from the accident.

"Whoa, I have to bring these vehicles back to Greece. They'll keep the Underworld's numbers soaring." Hades felt something pull at the bottom of his himation. Looking down, he saw that a zombie was trying to climb up to him. He quickly destroyed it with a fireball. "Oy, these stiffs are just as annoying as the ones back home."

What was left of the living ignored Hades' presence, for they were far too concerned with their survival. The undead, on the other hand, zeroed in on him like he was wearing an "All You Can Eat" sign. And of course, they were too brain dead to realize he was immune to their threat. He created a barrier of flames around the chariot he was on and returned his attention to the mayhem.

_ Raccoon…__odd name for a city-state._ Hades took a sip of his martini. _Still,__why are the dead wandering around like this in the future? Come to think of it… if this truly is the future, wouldn't there be a future version of myself and the other__s__ around here somewhere? _He frowned. _Then again, this is another country; they probably have a different parthenon of deities. Must have not offered enough sacrifices or something. _He sighed_. Guess I can't lounge about forever. I'll search these buildings and see if I can find __any clues__._

Hades stood and made his way over to a large building across the street. He couldn't spot a door, for there was too much debris hiding it. He teleported inside. It was dark, but his flames allowed enough light for him to see. The interior was vast and spacious; there were boxes and various kinds of mechanisms scattered about. It seemed like an inventor's room of some sort, and judging from the silence, the place had been abandoned. However, judging _also_ from the blood smeared everywhere, he expected something was lurking in the shadows. Hopefully it was smart enough not to bother him. He headed further inside and stepped onto a metal walkway.

A gun clicked behind him. "Put your hands up where I can see them."

Turning around, Hades saw a woman. She had short, black hair and was wearing a red mini dress. The woman stared at him before lowering her gun.

"Oh, wrong guy." The woman walked over to him, her heels clicking against the metal grating. "Interesting." She circled around him. "If I hadn't seen it for myself, I would've never believed it."

_ Heh, the women around here sure wear the most revealing outfits. The Spartan trend must have caught on, not that I'm complaining._ Hades raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?"

"My name is Ada Wong." Ada stepped away from Hades, her back facing him. She placed her gun in the holster that was tied around her left thigh. "She's waiting for you by the way. The one you're looking for."

"And who might that be?" He folded his arms.

She thought for a minute and tapped her chin with her finger. "I believe her name was Persephone."

_ What? Then she really is here?_ Hades eyed Ada. "How do you know her?"

Ada shrugged. "Long story. But if you hurry, she might still be around to tell you herself."

"Uh huh." Hades frowned. This woman was far too vague, and she wasn't even wary of him like Claire and her brother were. _She must be trying to bait me. But why? Either way, let's see how much information I can drag out of her._ Even the best of liars sprinkled out little bits of truth to confuse their victims. That was talent he had many millennia to perfect. "How do I find her exactly?"

She glanced at Hades from over her shoulder and grinned. "Don't know." She gestured to the right. "But you could always ask Dr. Birkin."

Hades looked in the direction Ada was pointing and spotted a sign. It read: _To the Birkins. Head down G Avenue toward the Police Station._

Ada chuckled. "Though I should warn you." She flicked her bangs out of her eyes. "Birkin has suffered a little _accident_ recently. He might not be very happy to see you."

He sighed. "Is there anyone else I could ask?"

"Well…." She pointed to the left. "There's Alfred Ashford."

Past a large pile of crates was a doorway. Above it was a sign that read: _To the Ashfords. Turn right at Veronica Boulevard and take the ferry to Rockfort Island._

"But he's been a little busy lately. You see his sister has just awakened from a—" She glanced away. "_Coma_. She's really been making a mess of the place."

Hades rubbed his temples with his fingers. "Is there anyone I can ask that hasn't had any kind of _accident_?"

She put her right hand on her hip. "You do realize where you are, don't you?"

Several moaning sounds filled the air. Both Hades and Ada glanced around but saw nothing headed toward them. However, the noise grew louder. It felt near. Too close to not be seen, and yet….

Hades directed his gaze toward the ceiling; crawling above were seven strange creatures. Their bodies were skinless, exposing the red muscle underneath, and they clung to the ceiling with their large, sharp claws. One of them turned their head down toward Ada and Hades and opened its mouth, revealing its fangs and a long tongue that curled out into the air.

"Speaking of which." Pulling her gun from her holster, Ada briefly glanced at Hades. "Can you fight?"

He rolled his eyes. "Of course I can."

Ada saw some of the creatures leap down from the ceiling; they crawled toward them on the floor. "I'll take out half of these Lickers. You take care of the other half."

One of the Lickers shot its tongue out at Hades. It wrapped around his arm, and the Licker tried to pull him to itself. His skin turned orange, the heat searing the Licker's tongue; he lifted it up in the air and tossed it into a nearby window. The Licker screeched, its body getting pierced by the sharp glass. Two more Lickers jumped at Hades; he formed two fireballs in his hands and shot both Lickers down in mid-air. The Lickers skidded across the ground, and the flames engulfed their bodies, turning them to ash.

_ This place keeps getting weirder. Not even Echidna could've given birth to some of these creatures._ Hades heard something claw at the metal grating he was standing on.

Another Licker climbed up the railing behind him. Something screeched, and he spotted a second Licker crawling over to him from the front. He switched his gaze between both Lickers. The Licker in front of him leapt forward, and he disappeared from sight. It only hit a puff of smoke and ended up slashing off the head of the other Licker. Hades reappeared in front of the last Licker and shot it down with another fireball.

Ada flipped over the railing to where he was and stood next to him back to back, her gun raised and pointed at the shadows. She briefly glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "I got two. You?"

"Five." Hades kept his gaze on their surroundings.

"Got 'em all." Ada lowered her gun.

She walked away from Hades, but before she made it to the top of the stairs, an eighth Licker jumped out in front of her. It was larger than the others, its body was green instead of red, and the most notable difference was its long, scythe-like claws. Ada quickly raised her gun and aimed it at the Licker's head. It leapt into the air, ready to behead her. She shot it in the chest.

The Licker fell backwards onto the floor. It squirmed, but managed to get itself back on its feet. It jumped at Ada again, but she shot it in the head. Parts of its exposed brain splattered through the air. It slumped onto the floor, a pool of blood forming around its body.

"Well, that takes care of that." Ada blew the smoke away from her gun. "I don't know about you–" She stuck her gun back in her holster. "But if I were trying to find someone, I'd head for City Hall."

Hades looked at her. "Where is it?"

Ada pointed ahead. "Just head out that doorway, turn right until you reach Main Street, and it should be staring you in the face."

He narrowed his eyes. "And you're telling me the truth?"

She pulled out a pair of sunglasses and put them on. "That's for you to decide." She gave Hades another grin and casually waved. "Later." She ran off in another direction.

Hades groaned, his flames flaring across his body. "This is getting infuriating, but I might as well check it out. It's not like I have any other leads. Besides, if Persephone really is there, I should see if she's all right."

He headed out of the door that Ada mentioned and slipped past the chaos outside. Reaching Main Street, he spotted the large, white building up ahead. Engraved at the top were the words: _Raccoon City Hall_.

_ There it is. _He sighed. _Finally, after I find Persephone, maybe I can make sense of all this. _

But something made him pause; it was quiet. Looking around, he saw that the whole area had been cleared. Corpses scattered the ground; Hades examined one of them. Part of its head looked liked it had been blasted off by a gun. In fact all of the corpses had similar wounds.

_ Someone else is here. _Hades made a step toward the stairs, his eyes shifting to every corner of the street.

"Freeze!"

_ I knew that bitch was lying._ Turning around, Hades saw a soldier dressed in black. A mask was covering their face, but the uniform was tight enough for him to tell it was a woman. On her uniform read: _U.S.S_., and just above the letters was a red and white octagon symbol.

The soldier raised her rifle. "Don't make any sudden movements. You're coming with me. If you cooperate, I won't have to do this the hard way."

He blinked before letting out a laugh. "You're kidding, right? Do you really think your little toy is going to hurt me?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised." The soldier stepped forward. "You are subject 202. Hades: ex-ruler of the Grecian Underworld."

Hades stared at her. "Wait, you know who I am?"

This time it was the soldier's turn to laugh. "Of course. The U.S.S. are prepared for everything even runaway gods like you. Now stop stalling and surrender!"

"Really? Well, let's see if all that training was enough to save you." Hades' skin turned red and fire balls formed in his hands.

Before he could raise his arms, something stuck his back at full force and wrapped around his torso. He felt all of his power drain from his body, and it happened in such a rush that he lost the strength in his legs and fell to his knees. His head felt dizzy, and his ears started to ring. Looking down at himself, he saw a golden chain wrapped around his body. It was like the same one he had when he enslaved the other gods on Olympus. His arms were still free, and he grabbed the chains to try and rip them off. The soldier finally fired her rifle and out came not bullets but a large golden net. It pinned Hades down to the ground, leaving him motionless.

The soldier glanced over Hades to another soldier walking up behind him. "Good work, HUNK."

Scanning the area as much as he could in his position, Hades saw more soldiers come out from the shadows. _Ugh, how did I not see that coming? She was just playing scout._ He tried to go into a rage and free himself, but too much of his power had already been zapped away. And his flames, instead, were slowly extinguishing.

The female soldier stared down at Hades. "Thought you were gonna put up a fight, did you?" Her mouth wasn't visible, but Hades could tell she was smirking.

HUNK looked at the female soldier and pulled out a knife. "LUPO, let's take a sample of his blood." His voice was distorted by the gas mask on his face.

LUPO held up her hand. "No. Our orders were to simply detain him and send him back to headquarters. If he's infected, they'll deal with it."

Hades felt his eyelids grow heavy. The last thing he saw was LUPO kneeling down and saying, "You belong to Umbrella now."

….

Claire stared at her brother, her brow furrowed. "Hold on, how could you have been in the city the entire time? We never met here. I don't understand."

Chris nodded. "Yes, I told you. Jill, Barry, and I have been trying to warn the officials in the city since we escaped the mansion two months ago."

"But don't you see, Chris? It's not September. It's not 1998. You shouldn't be here." She walked over to the rubble that remained from the house and kicked a scorched piece of wood. "I shouldn't be here."

He walked over to her. "Are you feeling okay, Claire? I know that this situation is stressful; it's why I didn't tell you. I… didn't want you caught up in this nightmare. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you to those monsters."

"I know that!" She turned around. "You told me when you saved me in the Antarctic."

"See this is what I'm talking about. You keep going on about all these things that didn't happen." He glanced at the city and shook his head. "Maybe I should bring you to Barry; he's trying to find Jill by helicopter. You can have a chance to rest and clear your head."

"My head's already clear." She groaned and dug her hands in her hair_. I don't get it. Why can't he remember? What's going on?_ She lifted her head and inhaled a deep breath, her hands dropping to her sides. "Chris, please, just give me a hint. Just tell me something that'll let me know it's the real you."

"Of course it's the real me." He gestured to himself. "Why are you acting like this Claire?"

A silence fell between them. Claire met his gaze, her eyes searching for some answer. However, all she could find was his disbelief and confusion. He really did believe what he was saying was true; that this was their reality. Was it Chris? Did he lose his memory? No, that didn't make sense. If he had, then everything else around them would be as she remembered. But it wasn't. Maybe it was her. Maybe all the stress from a career of fighting the undead was finally getting to her. Maybe everything she remembered really was a lie.

_ But why? I don't understand. _Only one answer came to her mind; Claire reloaded her gun and walked past Chris. "I'm going to find Hades."

His eyes widened. "What? You're just going to leave and run off with that monster?"

"I need answers, and I think he's the one that has them." She looked at Chris from over her shoulder. "And he's not a monster."

Chris walked over to her. "What do you mean? Didn't you see him?"

She nodded. "I did. I didn't want to believe it, and to be honest, I'm still feeling a little unsure. But I think he really is a god."

"A god?" Chris sighed. "You can't be serious? He was just trying to trick you."

"I'm sorry, Chris, but this encounter just can't be chance. There has to be a reason, and I have to figure out what it is."

He grabbed her hand. "Don't do this; you're going to get yourself killed."

Claire smiled. "Well, if you remembered, you'd know that I'm good at holding my own. Just go and take care of Jill." She pulled away from him and headed toward the city. She couldn't deny that treating her brother like a stranger left a foul taste in her mouth, but he was acting like a stranger. Hopefully she would find out the truth or at least a way to help her brother if she was wrong. _Either way, __I have__ to do this._

….

A police officer wandered through the Arklay Forest, his shotgun ready and aimed for any trouble. Hearing howling in the distance, he narrowed his eyes and softened his footsteps before slowly following the sound. Soon, just like he expected, he found a pack of five dogs at the end of the path. One of the dogs lifted its head and quickly took notice of him.

With a growl, the dog charged at him, but he blasted it back with his shotgun. A second dog jumped at him, and he spun and kicked it in the face before shooting it twice in the head. It whimpered and remained on the ground while the other three continued to attack him. The man retreated while shooting at the dogs. One of them managed to tackle him down, but he quickly grabbed a knife and lodged it through the dog's skull. He scrambled back to his feet and pulled out a grenade. Pulling out the pin, he tossed the grenade at the last two dogs before running and ducking out of the way while they were blown to bits.

"I'll never get use to this." The man stood and continued on his way. Walking past the spot the dogs were congregating in, he noticed something shiny. Bending down and picking the object up, he examined it. "A woman's shoe?" It was silver and seemed to be some kind of dress sandal. Strangely enough, it was completely undamaged except for the unraveled strap. He frowned. "Poor thing." He continued venturing through the forest until he heard something echoing around him. It sounded like someone crying. _Maybe there's someone still alive around here._ He followed the sound and came across a small cave.

….

Persephone wiped her eyes. "Come on, keep it together. You'll get out of this."

"Hello? Is someone there?"

_ A man's voice, but I don't recognize it._ Her heart skipped a beat._ Did Wesker send someone to find me?_ She hid behind a large boulder and peered around it; she saw a police officer standing just outside. He had brown hair that hung over one side of his face. His skin was pale, but not sickly looking. She took a deep breath, inhaling his scent._ He's mortal but not infected.__Maybe he could help me. I should be careful though._

Glancing down at herself, she realized she still had her immortal glow and quickly faded it until her skin became a light olive shade. She then adjusted her height to something more mortal appropriate and made her way out of the cave.

The man looked at her, his eyes slightly widening. He regained his composure before asking, "Are you alright, Miss?"

She chose her words carefully. "I haven't been bitten if that's what you're wondering. Who are you?"

"I'm Leon Kennedy." He lowered his shotgun. "And you?"

"Depends." Persephone put her hands on her hips. "Are you with Umbrella?"

He shook his head. "No, I work with the U.S. government."

She raised an eyebrow. "You look like a regular beat cop to me."

Leon glanced down at his uniform, an unreadable expression crossing his face, before folding his arms. "I'm working undercover."

"Subtle." She looked away. _But he looks sincere. Maybe…. _She sighed. "Have you heard of a man named Wesker?"

He furrowed his brow. "You mean Albert Wesker? Why? What happened?"

"I just ran into him, and he tried to kill me." She fiddled with the loose strands of her hair and glanced away. "Something about not wanting any witnesses."

Leon walked over to her. "Then maybe I can help."

Persephone shrugged. "Sure. I need to find a way to get out of this place, but I'd feel safer with someone else. It's not exactly a petting zoo out there."

"I've actually been trying to do the same myself." He glanced around. "And we'd better get a move on before we attract any unwanted attention."

A light breeze brushed past them, making Persephone shiver. She hugged her arms around herself and looked out into the vast forest. "But where will we go?"

Leon thought for a minute. "I was thinking of heading into the city. Maybe find some other survivors to save."

"The city?" Persephone shuddered before vigorously shaking her head. "No, I can't go there."

"Why not…? I know it won't be pleasant, but I've already searched this area. It's too dangerous with the virus infecting all of the wildlife. "

"I'll risk it." She folded her arms. "I can't go back there." She pointed ahead. "Besides, the infection couldn't have spread that far. If we keep going along the forest we might be able to reach the outskirts."

"Fair enough." His gaze dropped to her feet; he pulled out the sandal. "Is this yours?"

"Oh!" Persephone glanced at her foot, her face turning a bit pink. "I forgot those stupid dogs ripped it off." She took the sandal and quickly put it on. "Thank you."

He smiled. "Not a problem. Do you have a weapon?"

_ My goddess powers, but I can't use those around him._ She shook her head. "No."

Leon took the handgun from his holster. "Ever used a gun before?"

She took it from him. "I'm familiar."

"Good. Here." He gave her two magazine clips as well.

She smiled. "I'm Persephone, by the way."

He nodded. "Nice to meet you. Now, let's go."

Leon and Persephone headed through the forest in silence. She glanced at him and sighed.

_ Well, this is a messy predicament I've gotten myself into. While the infected still try to attack me, they can't do any damage. I'll have to play my part well or Leon will suspect something_. She felt her skin itch. _And it's bad enough that he's going to tempt me beyond reason.__Stop it! Back off!_

Leon noticed she was staring at him. "What?"

Persephone mentally kicked herself. "So… you're with the R.P.D?" She felt her heart sink and lowered her voice. "I used to know them."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, I guess you could say I'm a survivor. That's why I don't have it in me to return to the city. I… I can't take the sight of it." She took a deep breath. "And what about you? What's your story?"

Leon paused before sighing. "Not much to it really. I was transferred to Raccoon City to join their police department, but when I arrived here, everything was in chaos. I managed to escape with some help, but I didn't really escape anything. Umbrella was everywhere. and their legacy continues even with the company's fall from grace. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to put an end to it. If not for anything but the sake of all those innocent people who lost their lives."

She let out a half-hearted chuckle. "Spoken like a true hero."

He shrugged. "I guess that's the best way to describe what I've become after all this. But don't you think this situation is peculiar? This city being here?"

_ Now that he mentions it, I do. _Persephone bit her lip. _Why is the city still standing? I just don't get it._ She shook her head. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Looking head, she spotted a small cottage in the distance. From the outside, it looked normal. There were no broken windows or bloodstains coloring the walls, and she didn't see any zombies or monsters nearby.

She pointed to the cottage. "Maybe we should search that place for supplies."

He checked his side pack. "You're probably right. I'm low on ammunition."

Leon headed toward the cottage first; slowly turning the knob, he opened the door. He was met with silence and looked around; it was a large room. Most of it was shrouded in darkness except for the small corner next to the fireplace; Leon spotted a silhouette in the firelight. It was an elderly woman in a rocking chair. She started to softly hum, the sounds of the chair slowly creaking back and forth filling the room.

_ "Rock a bye, baby, in the tree top…."_

_ "When the wind blows, the cradle will rock…."_

_ "When the bow breaks, the cradle will fall…."_

_ "And down will go baby, cradle and all."_

_ That voice._ Persephone rushed past Leon and headed over to the woman before he could protest. "Mother?"

T he woman turned her head. Her gaze met Persephone's, and a small smile crept its way onto the woman's face. "Kore, there you are. It's been so long since I've seen you."

Persephone stared at her. "Mother, what are you doing here?"

Leon walked up beside Persephone. "This woman is your mother?"

"Yes…." She frowned. "She's Demeter." She furrowed her brow. _But how did she get here?_

He blinked. "What?"

"Oh, Kore, dear. I'm just taking care of this infant I found; it's been so long since I've had a child to care for." Demeter revealed the bundle in her arms.

Looking down, Persephone gasped. "Panic?"

In Demeter's arms was an infant form of Panic. Most of his body was wrapped in a white blanket. His face was pudgier, and his horns weren't as long and sharp. Persephone frowned. Panic's mouth was smeared with blood. She drew her gaze to Demeter's arms; they were covered in tiny bite marks.

Persephone's eyes widened. "Mother, what happened to your arms?"

Demeter glanced down. "Oh, don't mind these. The poor thing's just teething."

"No, there's something wrong with that infant." Leon stepped forward. "Ma'am, I think it's infected."

Demeter recoiled from him. "Nonsense! He's perfectly healthy."

Leon held his hands up. "Ma'am, please. Just let me take a look."

"No, this child is mine!" Demeter glared at Leon. "I should've known better then to let some mortal into my home. You came here to steal the only thing I have left. And not only that, you tease me with the illusion of her!" She narrowed her eyes at Persephone.

"Illusion?" Persephone pointed to herself. "Mother, it's me."

"Don't lie!" Demeter clutched Panic closer to herself. "My daughter disappeared eons ago. I searched for her everywhere. Everywhere!" She sobbed, tears filling her eyes. "But I couldn't find her. No matter how hard I tried, and I've had to live with that pain for centuries. But now…." She looked down at Panic. "Now I have all I need. I'll never be alone again." She walked over to the fireplace and stuck Panic in the flames.

"Ma'am, don't!" Leon ripped Panic away from her.

Demeter snarled. "Give my baby back, you monster!" She reached out for Leon and grabbed him by the neck with both of her hands.

Persephone quickly aimed her handgun, but hesitated to pull the trigger. Ever since she had joined forces with Hades, she had no qualms with killing the Earth Goddess, but now that she had the chance, she found herself unable to. _Don't be stupid. Have you forgotten how she stabbed you in the back? She'd rather bend over for Zeus than protect you like a mother should. You've been nothing more than a doll to her. _

With tears threatening to spill from her eyes, she pulled the trigger. The bullet struck Demeter in the forehead, knocking her back. Leon dropped to the floor, rubbing his neck. Demeter snarled and rushed to her feet.

"This is for imprisoning me!" Persephone pulled the trigger again and hit her in the chest. "This is for making me your little toy!" Another bullet hit Demeter in the shoulder. "And this is for not believing me when that bastard put his hands on me!"

The last bullet struck Demeter right between the eyes, and she slammed back into the wall behind her. She slowly slid down onto the floor, her wounds smearing a trail of blood onto the wall.

Persephone rushed over to Leon and knelt beside him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Leon stared at Demeter's corpse. "But you just shot your own mother."

"It's complicated to explain, but she was never much of a parent. I can't say that I ever truly loved her. Besides, she was hurting you. I know we just met, but I'm not willing to be left alone again so soon." Persephone held out her hand and helped him up.

Leon shifted his gaze between her and the corpse. "Your mother's skin was green like that infant. She had to have been infected for a while. Are you sure you're going to be okay?"

Persephone stared at Demeter's corpse then met Leon's gaze. "Yes. I'm sure."

He stared at her for a moment before sighing and nodding. Turning around, he spotted a box of shotgun shells on the table next to Demeter's rocker. He picked them up while Persephone took Panic in her arms.

Leon reloaded his gun. "What are we going to do about that thing?"

She thought for a minute. "I'll take care of him."

He frowned. "I don't know. It might not be safe."

"It'll be fine; just let me handle this." She headed for the door. "Now let's get out of here before we have anymore surprises."

"I agree with you on that." He followed her.

Leon and Persephone headed back outside. However, the second they were out of the cottage, Panic began to squeal. He violently squirmed in Persephone's arms, and she had trouble holding on to him.

He raised his shotgun. "I told you. We need to destroy that thing."

"But…." She gasped, feeling Panic drop from her arms onto the floor. His babyish form changed into a little piglet. "What?"

"Persephone, stand back!" Leon aimed his shotgun at Panic.

"No, don't!" She reached down to pick Panic up, but he scurried away from her and into a deeper part of the forest. "Panic, wait!"

Leon ran after her. "Persephone, what are you doing?"

She continued to chase Panic through the forest. Reaching a river, she paused in her stride. _The current of that river is very strong._ She frowned. _I hope he stops._

Panic ran straight into the river, but his pig form was too weak to swim against the current, making him sink under.

"Don't worry, I'll save you." Persephone rolled her eyes. "Even though you were a jerk to me."

Persephone dived into the river. _That's strange. The river didn't seem this big from the outside. _

Once she was underneath the current, it looked like she was in an ocean. The tide carried her away, and there was no sign of Panic or Leon anywhere. It wasn't long before she could feel solid ground underneath her. Groaning, Persephone furrowed her brow. Every now and then a wave would wash up along her body. Slowly opening her eyes, she frowned.

_ Now where am I?_ She sat up and glanced around.

To her right was a large forest, and to her left was a huge ocean that stretched out into the horizon. The sky was dark and scattered with stars.

"Panic!" Her gaze shifted across the forest floor, but she didn't see any sign of the imp. "Leon! Great, he's missing too." She stood up. "Might as well keep searching."

Persephone headed into the forest. The trees stood tall and were reaching up toward the sky; the bushes and shrubs looked bigger than her body. Even the blades of grass were taller than her.

_ Wait, did I just shrink?_ She stopped walking. Looking up, she spotted puffs of smoke floating out in the air. _They seem to be coming from a land-based source. If I follow the trail, it might lead me to something._

Persephone followed the smoke until she came across a clearing. It was filled with large mushrooms. Putting a hand to her forehead and squinting her eyes, she could she the smoke coming from the largest mushroom on the other side of the clearing.

_ There's someone there._ She bit her lip. _Still, are they friendly or…? __She shook her head.__ Relax. You have your goddess powers. There's nothing to worry about._

She made her way over to the mushroom. Glancing around, she didn't see any signs of zombies or other creatures. When she got close to the mushroom, she was able to see the figure on top of it.

She gasped. _What?_

….

Groaning, Hades opened his eyes to a pure white room. The brightness of it stung, making him cringe. "Ugh, where am I?"

He tried to move but his arms were still tied in chains, and the rest of his body felt weak. However, as he shifted into a sitting position, he noticed something else. Looking down, he saw that his clothes were missing. Instead, he had on a thin, white cloth that only reached down to his mid-thighs.

He frowned. _What the…. _Glancing around, he realized he was in a white jail cell. The walls to the side and back of him were solid, and in front was a tightly packed row of vertical bars. They looked easy enough to blast through, but with the chains on him…. _Where did a bunch of mortals get these? And how did they already know who I am? Or was…. That soldier said I was the ex-ruler of the Underworld. But how…?_ His head throbbed, and he leaned back against the wall.

"So, you're awake?"

Hades turned his head in the direction of the voice. Sitting across the hall in another cell was a boy, who seemed to be around Claire's age. He was dressed the same way Hades was except he wasn't being tied down with chains. Hades couldn't completely see the boy's face, for his brown hair was covering most of it.

Hades closed his eyes. "What's it to you, kid?"

"Just wondering how long I have to live." The boy turned, revealing more of his face. "You don't sound or act like those monsters, but you look like one of them. So what's the deal?"

The boy's voice was very whiny and grating to Hades' ears. _He's going to get irritating fast._ He rolled his eyes. "Not this again. Look, babe, I'm not one of those monsters, okay. Name's Hades, Lord of the Dead."

The boy stared at him before shrugging and looking away. "Whatever. But if you must know, I'm Steve Burnside. I came here looking for a girl. We met on Rockford Island, but we got separated from each other. Then the Umbrella soldiers found me and locked me up in here."

_ Maybe it was Persephone. _Hades look at him. "Really? And who was this girl?"

"Claire Redfield." Steve met his gaze. "Know her?"

Hades frowned. "Oh, you mean Little Red. We bumped into each other a while back."

Steve's eyes widened. "Where is she? Is Claire all right? Did they bring her here too?"

"Relax, kid, she's fine. She's out in the forest with her brother." Hades sighed. "But enough chitchat. Do you know where we are?"

"The Hive." Steve rested his arms over his knees. "From the blueprints I saw, we're at least a mile underground, right below Raccoon City. This facility is ten floors, and we're stuck at the bottom."

Hades processed the information. "And how do I get out of here?"

"It's impossible to escape." Steve scoffed. "Believe me, I've tried. One path is to take the third floor tram directly outside of the city, but the area is constantly monitored by cameras and guards."

Hades raised an eyebrow. "And the other path?"

Steve sighed. "Well, there's a secret passageway that leads from the Hive to the sewers and through there you can get out at the police station above ground. But…."

_ There's always a catch._ Hades nodded to urge him to continue. "But what?"

Steve bit his lip. "You have to get past the Queen's Chamber on the top floor."


	5. Who Are You, My Queen?

Chapter Four:

-Who are you, My Queen?-

* * *

Hades sat in his cell in silence. _First things first, I need to get these chains off. Which path should I take? The tram sounds the easiest since there's nothing but mortals guarding it._

Hearing footsteps, Hades looked up to see members of the U.S.S. outside of his cell. One of the soldiers brought out a set of keys and unlocked the door.

"The superior wishes to see you." The soldier nodded to his comrades.

Two of them entered Hades' cell and lifted him from the floor.

"Hey, watch it." Steve struggled against the soldier holding him until he felt the edge of a gun against the side of his head.

"I'd keep still if I were you." The soldier holding Steve spoke in a grainy, female voice. "Unless you have a death wish."

Steve stopped resisting and let the female soldier escort him out of his cell.

Hades eyed the soldiers. _Lousy mortals. If it weren't for these cuffs, I'd smite them right now._ He sighed. _Guess this can't get any worse._

Steve and Hades were placed side by side with two soldiers in front of them and two behind them. The head soldier stood before the formation and led them down the hall. Hades memorized the path they took. Turning his head, he noticed that this floor was not only a holding cell for prisoners but other creatures too. He saw groups of hunters and lickers being held behind glass cells inside of metal containers.

A loud thump sounded off to Hades' right, and he heard Steve squeal. Looking past him, Hades saw that a zombie had jumped at them from behind another glass cell. However, this one looked a bit different. Its fingernails were more like long claws, and its eyes were more possessed. It was so aggressive that it nearly pulled the chains wrapped around its neck out of the wall behind it.

Steve shivered. "Ugh, I don't like crimson heads."

The soldiers, however, weren't fazed by it and continued to lead them out of the dungeons and into a big laboratory. The hallways were completely white from the floor to the ceiling. There were various rooms with large windows, allowing Hades to see inside. Each room had a group of scientists experimenting with different colored chemicals. Reaching the end of the hall, the soldiers brought Hades and Steve into an elevator. Once inside, the head soldier pressed the button to the top floor. The elevator went up and stopped.

The electronic voice of a woman spoke through the intercom. _"Level One: Queen's Chamber."_

Hades frowned. _Well, looks like I'm taking this path instead. If I'm meeting this Queen, maybe there's a chance to talk myself out of this mess._

This hallway was white as well, but it had no other rooms. Instead, it stretched on and ended at a large, black door on the opposite side. Engraved into it was the same red and white hexagon symbol that the soldiers had on their uniforms. Underneath the symbol read the name: _Umbrella Corp. _The head soldier entered a code into the door and opened it.

_ 'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves_

_ Did gyre and gimble in the wabe…._

Steve glanced around. "Wow, what a voice. You guys having a party in here?" He received a nudge in his rib cage from one of the soldiers' guns.

Hades looked up. _That voice does sound familiar. Who's singing?_

_ All mimsy were the borogoves,_

_ And the mome raths outgrabe._

Hades and Steve were led to a large office. Sitting at the base of the wall, on the opposite side from them, was a black desk. A large black chair sat behind it, but it was faced away from the group. It slowly rocked back and forth, the singing growing louder.

_ Beware the Jabberwock, my son!_

_ The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!_

All Hades could see was a pair of long, golden legs sitting in the chair. The legs crossed, slowly sliding against each other.

_ Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun_

_ The frumious Bandersnatch!'_

Hades watched the chair turn around. Seeing who was sitting in it, his eyes widened. "Persephone?"

She briefly made eye contact with Hades before focusing her attention on the soldiers. "Are these the prisoners?"

The head soldier stepped forward and bowed. "Yes, your Grace. What do you want us to do with them?"

Persephone stood from her chair, allowing Hades to completely see her. She was wearing a long, white dress that clung to her curves and billowed at her feet. Her hair was pulled back into a bun with two, large white lilies placed behind both of her ears.

"Well, for starters, you can let them out of these dreadful cuffs." Persephone examined Steve. "They're hardly necessary."

The head soldier let out a small gasp. "But, your Grace, it wouldn't be safe. Burnside is a hardcore criminal against Umbrella, and the other one…."

Persephone narrowed her eyes. "That's funny." She folded her arms. "I could have sworn I heard you questioning my authority. Surely I must be mistaken?" She slowly walked over to the head soldier and brought her face close to his. "After all, you know what happens when someone undermines my authority, don't you, Nicholai?" She brought her lips to his ear. "And remember who let you keep your position even after hearing about your most recent actions in the city."

Nicholai lowered his head. "Yes, your Grace. Forgive me."

"Good." Persephone looked at the other soldiers. "What are you standing around for? Unchain our guests then get out of my sight!"

The soldiers did as they were ordered and quickly left the room, locking the doors behind them. Feeling his powers return to him, Hades quickly snapped his fingers, and his normal clothing reappeared on his body. Steve jumped away from him, his jaw agape.

"How… how did you do that?" Steve backed away. "What are you? I…."

Persephone put a finger over his lips. "I would suggest you calm down. We are not like you, and things will run smoother if you accept it instead of breaking out into hysterics. Understood?" Receiving a slow nod, she removed her hand. "Excellent. Then I shall provide you with some new clothing." With a wave of her hand, a pair of cargo pants and yellow shirt appeared on him.

"Uh, thanks." Steve glanced her figure over before grinning. "So what's your name, Beautiful?"

She raised an eyebrow at him. "I only answer to _your Grace._ Anything less would be more than disrespectful." She met Hades' gaze. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Hades chuckled. "Of course, babe."

She narrowed her eyes.

He coughed. "I mean, your Grace." He smiled at her, and she briefly nodded. _That's odd. She doesn't recognize me. Unless… she's just pretending. I'll have to get her alone and ask what's going on._

Persephone circled around Steve; she placed a hand on his cheek and frowned. "You two look absolutely sickly, but with all of the chaos going on lately, it's no surprise." She smiled. "Come, I invite you both to my private quarters for some food and drink. Sound good?"

Steve placed a hand over his rumbling stomach. "Now that you mention it, your Grace, I am kind of hungry."

Persephone looked at Hades. "And you?"

"It'd be an honor, your Grace." Hades stole a glare at Steve. _Now if only I could figure out a way to get rid of the third wheel._

She walked over to her desk and pressed on a button; a door opened in the wall behind her. "Shall we then?"

Steve and Hades glanced at each other before following Persephone through the door; they headed up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway. As they walked, Hades noticed a line of paintings on the right wall. It started out with a newborn mortal, and with each picture, the child slowly grew older until the last painting that showed a man on his deathbed. There was a caption above the paintings titled: _From Cradle To Grave._ There were two doors at the end of the hall; Persephone opened the one facing them. Hades and Steve walked through.

"Welcome." Persephone smiled. "Make yourselves at home." She locked the door behind herself.

Steve looked at her. "So this is your dining room?"

Hades examined the room. The walls were white, but it was very dark. The only light came from the large fireplace that gave the room a golden glow. A long, red and white-checkered table sat in the center. The chairs were in the shape of chess pieces; the ones on the left side were white while ones on the right were red. At the very head of the table was a crowned chair; half of it had been painted red and the other half had been painted white. An assortment of stuffed flamingo heads had been mounted to the top of the right wall.

"Please take a seat." Persephone made her way to the crowned chair and sat down. "I hope everything is to your liking."

She snapped her fingers and several platters of food and bottles of wine appeared on the table. One side had plates of vegetables and meats while the other had bowls of pickled worms, fried fingers, and eye kebobs. Steve immediately rushed to the left side of the table and sat down while Hades sat on the right.

Hades smiled. "Well, you certainly know the way to a god's heart, your Grace."

Steve nodded, his mouth full of mashed potatoes. "Yeah, thanks."

"Of course, I'm glad you both are pleased." A cigarette appeared in her hand.

"Let me, your Grace." Hades flicked his thumb, igniting the tip of it.

"Thank you." Persephone put the cigarette to her lips and lit it. She inhaled and exhaled a small puff of smoke.

While Steve poured himself a glass of wine, he noticed that there were no plates in front of her. "You're not going to eat anything?"

Persephone paused before shaking her head. "Oh no, I… can't eat rich food like this. Too many calories. After all, if I don't watch my figure, no one else will" She laughed.

"No arguments here, your Grace." Shoving another fork full of food in his mouth, Steve's eyes raked over the curves of her body before lingering on her chest. Suddenly, his fork turned red hot against his tongue and fingers. He quickly dropped it on the floor and started coughing.

She raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong, Steve?"

He hit his chest and cleared his throat. "Nothing. Just ate a little too fast." He picked up his fork and went back to his food.

_ Look at her like that again, you little twerp, and you__'ll be joining the corpses outside__._ Hades kept his flames in check and took a deep breath_. Calm down. Everything will be fine. I'll figure out a way to get him out of here, and then I can have Persephone all to myself. Still, I how __did __she g__e__t here? It looks like she's been living in this place for a while. Maybe her garden had some portal to the future, and she's been sneaking back here on her free time? If that's hopefully the case, then I should be able to go back home in no time. _

Hades looked up and noticed a painting above the fireplace. A mortal was being tied to a post with a black sack over their head; it looked like they were about to be sacrificed.

"Interesting artwork, your Grace." Hades grimaced. "Who's your decorator?"

"Oh, one of my old employees. He was into taxidermy, so I had him fashion me those flamingos." Leaning back, she shifted her gaze between Hades and Steve. "So what are your stories? You both must have stirred up some real trouble for Umbrella to target you."

Steve swallowed the last bite of a mushroom. "You mean you didn't order us to be captured?"

"Of course not." Persephone took another drag from her cigarette. "I've got bigger problems to worry about." She chuckled. "But I can't deny that your presence here hasn't intrigued me. Especially you, Steve. You're in cohorts with the Redfields, aren't you?"

Steve blinked. "How…?"

"I do my research. Besides, Chris Redfield is one of the remaining S.T.A.R.S. members; he's Umbrella's most wanted." She pouted. "So, Steve, what's a poor kid like you doing getting mixed up in all of this mess?"

He looked away. "It's not important."

"Really?" Persephone stubbed her cigarette on her arm and flicked it into the fireplace. "If memory serves me correctly, weren't you a recent prisoner of Rockfort Island because of your father's misdeeds with the company?"

Steve frowned and quickly stood up, almost knocking over his chair. "Look, I don't care how nice you're being. I'm not going to be tricked into being your informant. You and Umbrella can go rot in hell for all I care!"

Persephone's eyes widened slightly, but she hid her glare and forced a smile. "Steve, please forgive me. I wasn't trying to pry." She walked over to Steve and took him by the hand. "Come, we'll continue this conversation in my office."

He narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Just to discuss a little—" She pressed herself against him from behind and placed his hands on her hips. "Business. Then I'll send you on your way."

Steve tightened his grip on her and nodded. "Fine, if you say so."

Persephone glanced at Hades. "Excuse us." She led Steve out of the room and shut the door.

Hades sighed and rubbed his temples. _I swear this whole situation is going to leave me with a bad enough migraine to last a century. Why is she acting like this? Here I was trying to find her, and she'd rather schmooze with some other guy._

_…._

_ Persephone led Steve through the other door into her office. __In the middle of the room was a black coffee table surrounded by four black, leather chairs; the furniture contrasted heavily with the white carpet and walls.__To the_ left was a large desk with a mainframe computer;several monitors hung overhead and fizzed with static.

She guided Steve to one of the chairs. "Have a seat, pet." He did so, and she sat on his lap. "You know it isn't often that I cross paths with a handsome man such as yourself."

Steve's face went red. "You don't, your Grace?"

"No. Which is why I believe we should take advantage of this moment." Entangling her right hand in his hair, she gently massaged his scalp. "It gets so lonely being cooped up in this office by myself." She brought Steve's face up to meet hers. "Would you like to play with me tonight?"

….

Hades drummed his fingers against the table, the chimes from the clock overhead slowly aggravating his nerves. _What's taking so long? _He groaned. _Forget it. I'm not going to be forced to wait here while she…._ He shuddered thinking about it. _Besides, I still have questions that need answering._ He stood and made his way to the door.

"Aaaah! Help me!"

_ What's going on? _Turning the knob, he realized it was locked. He melted the knob and pushed the door open.

"I don't know where Chris Redfield is! Stop it! No!"

Hades' eyes snapped to the door next to him. _That must lead to her office._

_ He pushed the door open and stared at the spectacle before him. _Persephone's face was buried in Steve's neck, and his head was thrown back, letting Hades see his expression. Steve's eyes were wide open, tears spilling from them. He struggled against Persephone, but she had his arms pinned down. He let out an ear-piercing shriek before his head fell from the chair and rolled onto the floor.

Blood sprayed all across the room while Persephone sat up, her eyes closed. Pieces of Steve's neck were hanging from her mouth, and she slurped it up like spaghetti. His blood was smeared all over her and continued to splatter onto her from his headless wound; she dug her hand into his left shoulder and ripped his arm off. Tilting her head back, Persephone shoved the arm into her mouth and devoured it whole. She smirked and licked her fingertips; opening her eyes, she met Hades' gaze. They glowed bright red, and a low hiss escaped her lips.

Hades stared at her, his flames extinguishing. _That's not Persephone._ He backed away. "Well, your Grace, it was nice seeing you. But it looks like you're busy, so I should get going. Got other affairs to attend to. Deals to make. I'm sure you understand." He turned to leave, but she appeared in front of him, blocking his path.

She looked up at him, her red eyes filled with a killing lust and her mouth twisted into a crooked grin. "Going somewhere?"

….

_ It can't be. How did? Where did…._ Persephone slowly made her way to the large mushroom. She had to be hallucinating, that was the only explanation. She rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times. _No, it really is him. _

Sitting on top of the mushroom was Hades; he was reclining against a set a pillows and smoking from a hookah pipe. She stared at him and her eyes widened slightly; he was topless, exposing every inch of his muscular torso to her gaze. She glanced down noticing his usual black himation was tied loosely around his hips. If it slipped any lower, she'd see….

She turned away, a blush creeping up on her face. _What's going on? _She looked back at him. "Hades?"

He opened his eyes and glanced in her direction. "Who are you?"

Persephone frowned. "What do you mean? We already know each other."

"I can't see you from that distance." He gestured toward the mushroom. "Come closer."

She did and rested her arms against the edge of the mushroom. "There. Close enough for you?"

Hades narrowed his eyes. "No reason to be rude. And now that I can see you, you look like Persephone to me. But you still haven't answered my question." He took a drag from his pipe and exhaled a cloud a smoke. "Who are you?"

"You just said it yourself." Her aura glowed and fluctuated around her. "So maybe you should tell me who _you_ are, and why you're pretending to be Hades?"

Hades dropped the pipe and held his hands up. "Whoa, whoa, Angel-face, calm down. It's me; don't worry. But can you blame me for asking? You're always so distant that I hardly know anything about you. And no offense, but I've been starting to wonder. You're behavior has gotten very suspicious."

She raised an eyebrow. "Really?" She gestured to the area around them. "Then can you tell me where we are, what you're doing here, and why you're dressed like—" Her cheeks flushed. "That?"

"Fair enough, babe." Hades smoothed a hand over his hair. "We are in the Underworld; where else did you think it was? This is one of my special areas in the Kingdom, and I come here to relax. As for my attire, I'm usually here by myself." He smirked. "However, I could always change if you don't find it… desirable."

"Uh… no it's… I don't mind." She turned around. _Wait, I'm back in the Underworld?_ Looking up, she could no longer see the sky; instead it was the same fog she had grown accustomed to. _Then, wait… but Leon… Wesker… how did I? When…? What was?_ She screamed. "Argh, what is going on!"

Hades watched her. "Are you okay, Angel-face?"

"I…." She sighed and shook her head before turning to look at him. "I think I'm going mad. That's the only explanation."

"Why?" Hades took another drag from his pipe. "What happened?"

"Too many things." She gave an uneasy chuckle. "Now that I think about it, I'm not sure I could even answer your question. I feel like there's two different Persephones." She smiled. "One is who I want to be. Kind, human, with a life full of adventure and…." Her blush deepened. "Love." She shuddered. "The other terrifies me. She's a monster destined to destroy, who only craves blood and power, and in the end, she'll only be cut off from the world for the rest of eternity."

He met her gaze. "So which are you?"

Persephone shrugged. "That's just it. I don't know."

He closed his eyes. "Why?"

"Because I think… both of them are me." She bit her lip.

Hades grinned. "Well, Angel-face, perhaps I can be a better judge." Turning his right arm into a tendril of smoke, he lifted Persephone onto the mushroom.

Turning away, Persephone hid her red face. "No, really, you don't have to."

"Don't be so shy. I'm not gonna hurt you." Hades crawled over to her. Brushing a strand of hair from her face, he placed a finger under her chin. "Now, let's see…." He tilted her head from side to side. "You don't _look_ like a monster." He moved his hand to her face and stroked her cheek with his thumb. "You _look_ just as gentle and… human as you want to be. Though I don't know why you picked human. You're a goddess, babe, and an absolutely gorgeous one at that."

She blushed again. "That's sweet of you, but…."

Hades put a finger to her lips. "Ah, Ah, I wasn't finished yet." He came up behind her and moved his hands to her shoulders. He started to massage her, making her sigh. "And you don't feel like a monster either. I don't see why you're so harsh on yourself."

Her eyes tinged red. "The weak senses of the living have a way of lying to them, immortal or not." Her skin was starting itch, but she tried her best to suppress it. _I've never been close to him like this. I should move away, but I don't want to. Not yet. _

Hades nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck and slowly kissed his way up to her ear. "Perhaps, but I'm not one to let risk stop me. I can handle whatever surprises you're hiding if it means I can be with the woman I love."

She gasped and pulled away from him. "What?"

Taking another drag from his pipe, he blew out of stream of smoke. It circled around Persephone and formed the shape of a heart in front of her face. He smiled. "It's true, babe."

She folded her arms. "But what about Minthe?"

Sighing, he leaned back on his arms. "It's over between us, and probably shouldn't have lasted as long as it did. Honestly, I only took her back to make you jealous."

She narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, like I'm going to believe that."

"What can I say?" He met her gaze. "I've always had a way with words, and I've been able to manipulate just about anyone. But then again, most of them were other gods that I despise, a bunch of mortals I could care less about, or my minions. This is new territory for me, Angel-face. I'm not exactly sure how to express my emotions to someone I actually care about."

Persephone felt herself smile, but it quickly turned into a frown. "So you do have feelings for me. That's what I was afraid of."

He tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"The fact is…." She twiddled her fingers. "I like you too."

Hades stared at her. "You do?" He chuckled. "I mean… that's great."

She held up her hand. "Wait, there's something you need to understand. Even though I like you, I shouldn't." She drew her gaze toward the ground. "I am that monster whether you think so or not; it lurks inside of me." She looked at her hands and flexed them. "Even now, I can feel her flowing through my veins." Her eyes watered. "We can't be together; otherwise, I might kill you."

Hades blinked before he started laughing. "Kill? Uh, hello, Angel-face, you're talking to a god here." He grinned. "Being immune to death is one of my amazing qualities."

"Maybe in your world." A tear rolled down her face. "But I'm not so sure about this. I'm a goddess, and yet the virus still remains. It drives me to kill every living being I come across. As much as I have tried to resist, I can't; you're not safe around me." She cried. "And I don't want to lose you, not from this."

Sitting up, he placed his hand under her chin. "Angel-face, don't cry; you shouldn't get yourself worked up over nothing. This virus thing can be easily fixed."

She furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about?"

Hades gestured to the mushroom they were sitting on. "You're looking at an endless supply of ambrosia. Just eat enough until your full, and this virus of yours will go away. Poof. Done. Boom."

"Are you sure?" Persephone frowned. "That sounds too simple."

"Hey, I've been around for several millennia. I know what I'm talking about." He smiled and pressed his forehead against hers. "Then after you're cured, we'll have a little fun."

_ Well, if it'll free me from Umbrella and Wesker, it couldn't hurt to try it._ Persephone dug her fingers into the mushroom and ripped out a fairly large piece. She chewed off a small bite and swallowed. A woozy feeling washed over her._ The sensation of the virus is weakening. Then this stuff actually does work. _

She quickly ate at the rest of the piece, feeling the T and G virus fade from her system. Placing a hand over her stomach, she groaned but reached for another piece of the mushroom anyway.

Hades wiped a crumb from her mouth. "Ah, ah, I said until your full." He watched her facial expression. "How do you feel?"

"Better…." She smiled. "It's like the virus is completely gone."

"Perfect." Bringing Persephone onto his lap, he smirked. "Now, let's see, where were we? Oh right, we admitted our love for each other, and then we were going to consummate our union."

Persephone gasped, feeling his lips against hers. _Is this real? It almost feels too good to be true. But maybe I should stop questioning things and go with it. I just want to be happy for once._

….

Claire unloaded the remainder of her clip into the zombie in front of her. It dropped to the ground, and she took the opportunity to head into the door it was blocking. She found herself in a little diner. The door shut with a rusty creek, leaving her in silence. The diner appeared to be abandoned, but she knew better than to let her guard down. Spotting a clip on the counter, she quickly grabbed it and reloaded her gun. A zombie jumped up from behind the counter and snatched her arm. She stumbled backward, managing to yank herself out of its grip. It let out an aggravated moan and started to climb over the counter toward her. Quickly aiming her gun, she shot it in the head and watched it drop back to the floor.

_ This city is crazier than how I remember it._ She sighed. "Where are you?" Looking toward the window, she noticed a group of people dressed in black run by. _They look like soldiers._

She saw another door and made her way out of the diner. It led out into an alleyway; she headed out to the major street. The soldiers she spotted were standing right around the corner. She hid behind the wall of building next to her and listened in.

"Damn, this situation isn't getting any better. How long does that bitch want us to run around?"

"Don't speak of her that way. You know what will happen."

"Like I care. We're good as dead anyway playing out here like her little guinea pigs."

"I'm sure she has a good reason; besides, she seemed pleased with our latest catch. Maybe she'll let up."

"You mean that death god? Hades or whatever?" The soldier laughed. "Fat chance; everyone's expendable to her."

Claire furrowed her brow. _Hades was captured? Great. Nothing is ever easy, but at least I have a lead. _

"Shut up. You idiots know what you signed up for. Now quit complaining and do your job." A third soldier pulled out their phone. "Yeah, uh huh, got it." They put the phone away. "Come on. We're needed back at headquarters."

Claire saw the soldiers leave. _If I follow them, I'll find Hades. __I j__ust have to make sure they don't spot me. This should be fun. _

….

Hades took a few steps back, but Persephone just slowly followed him. Her eyes watched them with amusement, which added to the creepiness of her bloodstained appearance.

"Where's the rush?" She placed a hand on his chest and started to guide him back inside of the office. "You just got here. Why don't you relax a little?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Look, I don't know what you are, but I'm not interested in sticking around."

She giggled. "Hades, it's me, Persephone. I thought you were smarter than this."

He glanced back at Steve's corpse, which was still dripping blood onto the floor. "You don't seem like the Persephone I know."

"Really?" She raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you think that what you know isn't only what I've allowed? After all, everyone has their secrets."

He frowned. "And what are you hiding exactly?"

"Let me explain." Persephone picked up Steve's head and made her way over to another part of the room. "Follow me, and don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you."

Hades folded his arms. "I find that hard to believe."

"Hey, it's not my fault that you decided not to try and blend in." She pressed a button and turned on the monitors. "You should consider yourself lucky that I was able to find you before things got worse."

He blinked. "Wait. You _were _the one behind my capture?"

She nodded. "Yes. I sent Ada to lure you into a trap. Did you actually believe the mortals would've known how to zap the power of a god on their own?" She chuckled. "It was the only way for us to be reunited without raising any suspicions."

Pressing another button, the wall beneath the monitors flipped around, revealing shelves of severed heads. Hades stared at them. They were each encased in a glass container. At the base of the glass was a plaque that had the victim's name engraved in it. Hades examined a few of the names. One had the head of a young, blonde girl; the plaque read: _K-Mart_. The next had the head of a middle-aged black man; his plaque said: _L.J_. The one next to his was another woman; she had black hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. Her name read: _Rain Ocampo_.

Hades furrowed his brow. _Geez Louise, how many people did Persephone kill?_

"As for the boy, he's a completely different matter." Persephone placed Steve's head in a glass container. She sat it at the end of the row on the top shelf next to a woman with short, dark blonde hair. Her plaque read: _Alice_. "I was ordered to hunt down the Redfields. Chris specifically, but Umbrella wouldn't mind getting his sister as well." She carved Steve's name into a piece of metal with a knife and placed it into the base of his container. Turning around, she grinned at Hades. "There was no reason for you to be jealous."

His eyes widened slightly, and he shook his head. "Jealous. Me? Don't be ridiculous."

"Don't hide it, Hades. I saw how you watched us." Persephone sat down in one of the chairs. "There's no need to worry; I only have eyes for you." She smiled. "Which is why I'm glad all of this happened. I can finally tell you the truth."

"The truth?" Hades sat down in one of the empty chairs.

She nodded. "Yes. You see; I'm originally from this time. I was an experiment. Umbrella is the company that owns this world, and they have developed a sort of underground business in building bio-weapons with the viruses they create. I'm sure you ran into more than a few of them out in the city."

Hades folded his arms. "So what are these viruses?"

"There are several." She sighed. "But I'll focus on the main two. The T-Virus, also known as the Tyrant virus, is what created all of those zombies outside. It kills a living being and reduces it to a mindless, flesh-eating leech." She clasped her fingers together. "As for the G-virus. It was supposed to be superior to T, but our research has proven that to be false. It causes the victim to rapidly mutate; unfortunately, the victim devolves each time." She chuckled. "And I was infected with both."

He gasped. "What?"

"Even though I retained most of my humanity, I was considered unstable. That was until I fell through a time machine and wound up in Ancient Greece. I landed on Demeter's island where she decided to make me her daughter and thus, a goddess. She gave me a potion mixed with her DNA and ambrosia, and it managed to stabilize the viruses in my system, allowing me to become the most formidable tyrant to date." She glanced away. "Well… the second most." She picked up a photo from the table and showed it to him. "This is my creator, Albert Wesker. The definition of a cold fish if there ever was one."

Hades examined the picture before looking back at her. "How come you never told me any of this?"

"I wasn't sure if you'd believe me or even want me around." She grinned. "I am after all, dangerous." She moved from the chair and sat on the table. "But that's all in the past. You're here now."

He nodded. "Well, yeah, but don't you think we should find a way back home?"

Persephone tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean? We are home." She smiled. "Look, I have a proposal for you. Wesker wants me to retrieve the Redfields to settle a score, but I have better plans in mind. I want to capture Chris and use him to get rid of Wesker once and for all. And when I do, I want you to be my new king."

Hades furrowed his brow. "King of what?"

"Of the world." She took his hands in hers. "There's only one original founder of Umbrella still alive, Oswell E. Spencer, but we can get rid of him easily. Then you and I can take control and rule this world for ourselves. Think about it. All the power and resources at your disposal, and Zeus and the other gods are long gone. They lost their powers eons ago when the mortals stopped worshiping them, but you're ruler of the dead. The two of us together will be invincible."

_ When she puts it like that, how can I refuse?_ He met her gaze. "Angel-face, I'd love nothing more than to be with you. This whole future thing was unexpected, but it sounds like a great gig." He shrugged. "Count me in."

She smiled. "You mean it?"

"Yes." Hades grinned. "I was planning on asking you to be my queen anyway." He wrapped his arms around Persephone's waist. "So what's first on our little plan to conquer the world, my sweet?"


	6. Fallen Too Deep

Chapter Five:

-Fallen Too Deep-

* * *

Claire pressed herself against the wall and peeked around the corner; up ahead was a tram station. _I bet it leads right to their headquarters, but how am I going to get inside? This place is filled with soldiers._ From what she could see, the soldiers were loading cargo into one of the trams. _There has to be a way to sneak on board._

Claire saw a soldier stray away from the group toward the corner she was in; she quickly ducked behind a stack of barrels. The soldier walked over to a nearby jeep and unlocked the back seat.

"Just my luck. First week on the job, and I'm dealing with this crazy bullshit." The soldier had a high, female voice and was wearing her dark hair in a ponytail. A mask covered her face, making it difficult to tell what she looked like, but it left the back of her head exposed. She answered her walkie-talkie. "I've got it, VECTOR, don't worry." She turned it off and dragged a large suitcase out of the jeep. "What the hell did I get myself into?"

_ She's not that much bigger than I am. Maybe I can go in disguise. I'll have to be quick though, otherwise I could be spotted._ Claire slowly stood up. The soldier was still facing the jeep and was too busy ranting to pay attention to her surroundings. Taking out her gun, Claire crept over to the soldier.

Claire raised her arm and struck the soldier on the back of the head with the blunt end of her gun as hard as she could. The soldier staggered a bit before dropping the suitcase and falling to the ground. Claire glanced around to make sure no one had seen her and quickly dragged the soldier behind the barrels. The soldier was wearing a fairly tight uniform, but Claire did her best to take it off without making too much noise. She slipped it on and then equipped the soldier's weapons. After properly securing her mask, she heard some static feedback echo from the walkie-talkie on the ground.

"_SHARK, do you copy_?"

Claire picked up the walkie-talkie and did her best to alter her voice. "I'm here."

"_What happened, rookie_?"

She sighed. "Just a little run in with a corpse, sir. These bastards are everywhere."

"_Roger, return to the tram with the supplies. We're going back underground._"

"Yes, sir." Claire turned the walkie-talkie off and secured it in the strap at her hip. She heard the soldier moan behind her and turned to see that she was waking up. Claire took a rock and struck it against the soldier's head. "Sorry about this."

Claire retrieved the suitcase and returned to the tram station with the other soldiers. So far none of them looked like they suspected anything and allowed her to board the tram.

"Good, you made it in one piece, rookie."

Turning, Claire saw a soldier dressed in black with a dark cloak over his head. His face was covered by a black mask and blue goggles. His hand was held out like he was expecting her to give him something. _This must be VECTOR. That girl seemed to have a bit of an attitude; I'll have to play my part if I want to get through this._ She scoffed and roughly handed him the suitcase. "You have no faith in me, do you?"

VECTOR took the suitcase and chuckled. "You got spunk, rookie; we need the toughest out there in this operation. But I warn you, getting too cocky in this environment is just going to get you crossed with the sharp end of someone's blade. Now take your seat."

Claire nodded before finding one of the empty seats and strapped herself in. Soon everyone and everything was aboard, and the tram began its descent into the facility_. Now I just have to find __Hades__, of course, that's going to be easier said than done. I'll have to get away from these guys and search for him. Although, I have a feeling I'll have to cause more damage than I'd like. _

….

"Persephone, where are you!" Leon's voice echoed through the empty trees, but he heard no reply. Persephone had disappeared beyond the river before he could catch up with her, and he decided to follow it to this section of the forest. Leon slowly made his way down the path, the numb silence mildly interrupted by the sound of his footsteps crunching along the grass. He hadn't run into any undead so far, and honestly, he didn't mind the breather. "Persephone, come on, just give me a sign!" He sighed._ I always get stuck with the rebellious ones._

Leon wasn't sure what to think of the situation. How on earth did he end up back in Raccoon City, and how was it even still around? His memory told him that it had been destroyed years ago, but now it seemed like all of his senses were playing a trick on him. He wished that were the case, but the city appeared as real as ever. All he knew was that he had to survive this situation as best as he could until he could find some answers.

A loud rustle came from the bushes next to him, and he quickly turned and shined his flashlight over the area. The noise, however, stopped, and he didn't see anything. Narrowing his eyes, he took a few steps closer and something flew out of the bushes straight at him. He shot it, and it fell to the ground.

He shined his light over it. "A butterfly?" Looking beyond the bushes, he noticed a dirt pathway and saw small footprints leading into a darker part of the forest. "Hmm, I should check it out; she might have gone this way."

Leon followed the dirt road, his eyes carefully examining every nook and cranny in case anything jumped out at him. Strangely enough, nothing did, which worried him. There had to be something lurking about to scare or destroy the other monsters. He could only imagine what. After what felt like thirty minutes of walking, he stopped to rest.

"She has to be around here somewhere." Leon took a swig of water from his canteen and noticed something hanging on the tree branches above. Aiming his flashlight, what he saw looked like strange, white webs. It didn't seem to belong to a spider, and he didn't see anything lurking in any of them. However, up ahead, he saw large, broken cocoons scattered across the floor. "This doesn't look good."

Leon made sure his shotgun was fully loaded before heading over toward the cocoons. He soon found himself in a field of mushrooms; they were fairly large in size and had the same cocoon debris covering them.

He coughed and covered his nose with his sleeve. _Ugh, that smell. Is it coming from the mushrooms?_ Feeling dizzy, he lost his balance and staggered a few steps back. "It's making me feel intoxicated." He rubbed his eyes. "I'd better hurry."

Something shiny caught Leon's eye. Turning, he saw something glowing underneath one of the cocoons; he carefully made his way over to it and got a closer look. It was Persephone; she was trapped under the webs and seemed to be unconscious. Taking out a knife, Leon kneeled down and cut at the web until he was able to pull her out. He laid her across the ground before glancing at the cocoon and back at her. Persephone's skin was no longer the normal olive shade she had before, but instead shined like it was made of gold.

_ But I thought the glow was from the cocoon. How…?_ Leon ran a hand against her cheek; there didn't seem to be anything wrong. Was it just his imagination? He gently shook her. "Persephone, can you hear me? Wake up." Her head drooped down, and she muttered something incoherent. There were crumbs around her mouth, and he noticed a piece of mushroom in her hand. "It must be a reaction from the mushroom then; is it poisonous?"

The sound of creaking branches echoed above, and debris started to fall around him. Looking up, Leon saw a giant caterpillar crawling down the tree trunk. It was green with white and black spots trailing along its back. It let out an ear-piercing screech and spit a gooey web at him. Leon ducked and rolled out of the way; he landed on his knees and aimed his shotgun.

"So you finally decided to show yourself." Pulling the trigger, he fired two shots that struck the caterpillar straight in the head.

It screeched again before dropping to the ground, blocking Persephone from Leon's reach. He quickly stood up and unloaded a few shotgun shells into the caterpillar's thorax. It lunged at him headfirst, and he rolled out of the way, causing the caterpillar to slam into the dirt. It lifted its head, leaving a huge hole in the ground and swiped its lower body at Leon. This time he wasn't able to dodge out of the way and was knocked back into one of the mushrooms. The impact made the mushroom snap from its stem and release a yellow gas that filled the area like a thick fog.

Leon coughed, the gas stinging his eyes. His vision started to go hazy, and he stumbled back, dropping his shotgun. He tried to block out the gas with his sleeve and reached for the pocket on his left pants' leg to grab an herb he found to cure poison. Unfortunately, it was too late; the gas was already taking affect. Everything around him started to distort, and he felt like he was floating on air. The trees, bushes, and rocks began to levitate as well; he reached for his shotgun but had a difficult time getting a grip on it. The gun moved as though it was made of Jell-O and continuously slipped out of his hand like a wet bar of soap.

"What's… what's happening to me?" A sudden impact collided with his head, sending him flying into a tree. Looking down, he saw that he was covered in webs, but the webs quickly turned into ropes that started strangling him to death. "Shit! No!" He saw Persephone's lifeless body float into the clouds away from him. "Persephone, wake up!"

She still didn't respond and vanished into the sky; what was he going to do? He tried to use his knife to cut the webs, but it incinerated in his hand. He screamed in pain from the heat. The webs were getting tighter, and there'd only be a few minutes more until he was dead. It didn't help that the caterpillar was now closing in on him.

….

"Are we really going to do this here?" Persephone glanced around at the mushroom field and hugged her arms around herself. Death and violence had become old friends to her, but this intimacy thing was too new, too strange. Sure, concerning Hades, she had thought about it every now and then, but the fantasy had always been just that, a fantasy. Now she had the opportunity right in front of her, and she didn't know what to do. _But why not try it at least once? What could it hurt?_

"Why not, Angel-face? We're secluded; no one's going to interrupt us." He nibbled her ear. "Just relax." He started slipping her dress from her shoulders.

Persephone shivered from the cold as well as her nerves. The idea of being naked in front of him made her feel vulnerable, and she didn't like it. "You know, maybe we should wait. This is going a little too fast for me."

_ Persephone, wake up! Can you hear me!_

"What?" She looked around. _Leon?_ It definitely sounded like him, but she didn't see him anywhere. _I thought I was back in the Underworld; how am I hearing his voice?_

Hades furrowed his brow. "Something wrong?"

"No… I…." She shook her head. "I thought I heard something."

_ Persephone, please!_

Her eyes widened. _No, I'm sure of it this time._ She looked around again. "Leon!"

Hades stared at her. "Who?"

_ Maybe he came to the Underworld with me?_ She stood up. "Leon, where are you?"

The moment the words left her mouth, the world around her started to dissolve and melt away. She turned around; Hades had disappeared. A yellow gas filled the area, making her cough, and she covered her nose.

_ What's happening? I don't understand._ Blinking a few times, a new mushroom field appeared to her. This one, on the other hand, wasn't mystical; it was as dark and messy as the forest she had left behind. Looking down at herself, she saw that she had been lying in the remnants of a cocoon. "How… when did I…?"

"Persephone!"

Quickly turning, Persephone saw Leon being cornered at the base of a tree by a giant caterpillar. On instinct, she raised her hand and shot a blast of white energy that struck the caterpillar dead on and turned the creature to dust. Persephone rushed to Leon, the gas making her feel lightheaded. She knelt beside him; he was looking straight at her, but his eyes were unfocused, like he was in a daze.

"Leon, are you okay?" Instead of responding to her question, he continued to shout her name over and over. His voice sounded ragged like he was having difficultly breathing. "It must be from the gas." She placed her hand on his chest and used her healing powers to open his lungs, so he could breathe despite the toxic area they were in.

He seemed to calm down while his breathing evened out, but his mind still seemed to be distant. Persephone coughed again; being a nature goddess, she was immune to the majority of plants that, if mixed right, could cause strange mood reactions or death, but ones that merely caused intoxication were another story.

_ That's right; I ate that mushroom._ She put a hand to her head_. I always knew there was a reason I picked smoking over liquor._ She collapsed beside Leon, and the last thing she saw was a silhouette approaching them.

….

Hades watched Persephone pull out a suitcase from the large desk near the back of the room. She returned to him and sat it on the coffee table. Undoing the locks, she opened the suitcase. Inside were several vials of liquid; half of them were green while the other half was purple. She took out a vial of each liquid and placed them in a syringe-gun.

He raised an eyebrow. "What is that?"

"The T and G virus of course." Persephone met his gaze. "If you're going to be my King, I need to make sure you're worthy."

He scoffed. "And why wouldn't I already be worthy?"

Furrowing her brow, she shook her head. "No reason to be offended, Hades. I'm sure your body won't reject the viruses at all. This is simply an immunity test."

"Uh, Angel-face, hello." He pointed to himself. "I'm a god. I'm already invincible and immune to everything."

"Really?" Setting down the syringe-gun on the coffee table, she stood in front of Hades. She gently took one of his hands in hers.

Feeling a sudden sting in his hand, Hades jerked his hand back. _Huh? What was that?_ Examining it, he saw a line of blood trickle down the side of his thumb. And the blood was plain and red, the kind the mortals had. _This can't be mine._ If he was going to bleed at all, it should have been ichor, which was gold in color and completely mystical in appearance. He shifted his gaze from his hand to her. The blood on her skin had already turned dark from drying, and the wound on his hand looked fresh.

"You don't seem invincible to me." Persephone giggled. "Look at how easily I cut your hand with my little nail." She teasingly dangled her index finger in front of him.

_ How did she?_ He stared at his hand. _Just a scratch, really?_ There was no way he could be injured by something so simple. Usually it would take one of Zeus' lightning bolts or Poseidon's trident to even bruise him. Well, with the exception of that time when he hit on Aphrodite and was met with the wrong end of Hephaestus' hammer. _Something's not right about this._

"Now this'll hurt a bit, and you may feel itchy for a couple of days, but trust me, you'll start to like it." She held up the syringe-gun.

Hades crossed his hands in a "T" shape. "Hold it, babe, I'm suddenly losing interest in this offer of yours."

She paused. "What do you mean?"

"Why?" He gestured to the syringe-gun. "You want to inject me with that virus of yours, even after you told me what it does."

Persephone blinked before rolling her head back in laughter. She caught her breath and looked at Hades. "Don't be ridiculous. That's what happens to the lesser beings that get infected. But you aren't weak; that's why I'm choosing you. You'll be just like me with the powers of both the virus and the divine flowing inside of you." She sat in his lap. "Hades?" Raising her hand, she rested it on his chin. "Don't you love me?"

He nodded. "Well, yeah of course, but…."

Persephone turned his face toward hers. Straddling him, she slowly ground her hips against his and moaned in his ear. "Don't you ache for me?"

Groaning, he lowered his head to her neck and lightly nuzzled his teeth over her skin. "You have no idea."

Chuckling, she lifted his head back to hers and moved herself so close their lips were almost touching. She whispered in a low, sexy tone, "Don't you want to be with me forever?"

He met her gaze._ I always did love her eyes._ He wrapped his arms around her waist. "Yes, my sweet."

Persephone kissed Hades' nose and started nuzzling his cheek. "Then close your eyes and let me grant your wish."

He did as she asked. Smirking, she picked up the syringe-gun; she pointed it at the back of Hades' neck.

_ All of this feels too good to be true._ Hades leaned forward to kiss her. _I…._ He felt something sharp against his skin. Eyes snapping open, he quickly grabbed Persephone's arm and yanked it away from himself. He saw the syringe-gun in her grip._ What is wrong with me? I'm falling for the same trick that mortal kid did._ He shoved Persephone away from him.

She landed back on the coffee table, her body colliding with the suitcase. The vials shattered under the force of her weight, and the liquid of the viruses started to spill on the floor.

Persephone saw the broken vials and gasped; she glared at Hades. "You idiot, do you realize what you've done!"

"If you mean seeing through your little smoke screen, then yes." Hades stood. "Sorry, babe, deal's off. The Persephone I know may have a dark side, but this is pushing it. So why don't you run along, take your viruses, and find someone else to add to your collection of heads!"

She heaved heavily and scowled, her eyes glowing red. "You ungrateful whelp! I was trying to make this easy for you, to make this mutual, but you forget…." She stood up on the coffee table, the canines of her teeth sharpening into fangs. "I am Queen; everything in this world belongs to me. Even you."

Snapping her fingers, a table appeared behind Hades. Magical chains sprung from it and wrapped themselves around him. He tried to burn them off, but the second they touched him he felt his powers drain.

_ Not this again._ The chains pulled him onto the table, and the more he struggled, the more they tightened around him. He glared at Persephone, his flames still maintaining enough energy to turn orange. "Let go of me, you—!" One of the chains wrapped around his mouth.

Persephone wagged her finger. "Tsk, tsk, I wouldn't say anything you'd regret, Hades." She walked over to the table and climbed on top, straddling him again. "All ways are my ways here, and if I don't get my way, I'll get your head." She lifted his right arm and gently cradled his hand against her face. "So I suggest you stop fighting, and let me take what's always been mine."

Eyes turning red, she lowered her head and sunk her teeth into his arm. Hades' muffled screams filled the room while he tried to pull away from her, but it was no use. The chains only got tighter and tighter, and if he had been mortal, his body would have been crushed by now. Persephone pulled back, taking a chunk of his forearm with her. His blood spilled down her mouth adding a fresh coat of red to her skin.

She licked her lips. "I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship. And don't worry, I won't kill you too soon; I like to savor my prey."

Hades could only whimper, his mind going dizzy from the chains. How was she able to hurt him like this? Was he turning mortal, was it an affect from the chains, or was it her? All he knew was that this wasn't the real Persephone, and he had to figure out a way to escape.

….

_ Ugh, my head. What the hell happened? _Leon opened his eyes; his vision was blurry and strained from the constant throbbing in his head. He dug his hands into his hair and groaned. "I feel like I just walked out of a bar at happy hour."

"Not quite."

Turning his head, Leon saw a black, white, and red blur standing next to him; he rubbed his eyes a few times, allowing his vision to clear. He gasped. "Ada?"

She smiled. "Long time no see, Leon."

He glanced her up and down; she looked like she did when they first met in Raccoon City. "Is it really you?"

Ada shook her head. "Hmm, those toxic mushrooms must have really done you in."

_ That's right. I was in that field fighting an infected caterpillar; I must have gotten knocked out. But wait, where's…?_ Leon looked around and finally noticed Persephone, who was lying beside him. She was still unconscious, and her skin had the same glow as before. "The poison hasn't cleared from her system?"

Ada stepped closer to him. "It's alright, Leon, she's not poisoned."

He looked back at her. "What do you mean? Look at her skin, it's…."

"Let's just say this girl is very special." She folded her arms. "Otherwise, you wouldn't be alive right now."

_ What is she talking about?_ Leon furrowed his brow. As usual Ada spoke in riddles and loved to leave him in the dark; there was no doubt in his mind that she was the real Ada despite this strange world. "Really, and what are you doing here?"

"Not much." She glanced at Persephone. "Do me a favor and keep an eye on her, won't you?" She waved at Leon before running back into the depths of the forest.

Leon stood, still feeling woozy. "Ada, wait!" However, she was already gone. "Great." He sat down and took a deep breath; he coughed a little and put a hand to his chest. "That's weird. My lungs feel different, like they're stronger." He looked at Persephone. _What did Ada mean about her, and how did I survive? From what Ada said, it sounded like Persephone saved me._

He tried to recall the event; he remembered being strangled and felt like he was dying. Then a flash of white light made the delusions go away, and the last thing he saw was Persephone leaning over him.

Leon put a hand to her face. "Just what are you exactly?"

"No." Persephone turned her head toward his hand.

He furrowed his brow. "Huh?"

She continued to make faces and muttered, "Hades…." Her eyelids moved a bit before she finally opened them and groaned. Her gaze drew toward Leon, but at first it seemed like she was looking past him to someone else. She blinked. "Leon?"

He nodded. "Good to see you're still amongst the living. Are you alright?"

She sat up. "I think so. My head is killing me though."

He put a hand on her shoulder. "You were being attacked by a giant caterpillar; the mushrooms in its nest were releasing a toxic gas that make the victim hallucinate."

"A hallucination?" She gave a cold laugh and shook her head. "Of course. Like I'd actually get a break for once."

"Now do you mind telling me what happened back there? Why you're…." Leon gestured to her glowing form.

He watched Persephone look down at herself; her eyes went wide before she turned away from him. "What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb." He folded his arms. "Ada said you weren't poisoned; so why do you look like this?"

"Ada?" She sniffed the air, and he saw her eyes tinge red. "You mean Ada Wong?" Her voice lowered to a very deadly tone.

_ Her eyes; is she infected?_ He nodded, but slyly reached for the handle of his knife. "You know her?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Yes, that…!" Growling, she quickly stood up. "I can still sense her; she shouldn't be that hard to track down."

Leon grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "Sorry, but I'm going to have to object to that. Now, tell me, what is going on?"

She yanked her hand out of his grip and paused where she stood. Her expression was very uncertain, and she continued to avoid his gaze. "Are you sure? It's not exactly a short story."

He folded his arms. "I've got time." He had seen enough during his encounters; whatever secret she was hiding couldn't be all that bad.

She sighed. "Fine. Do you… believe in god?"

_ Odd question, but I'll bite._ He nodded and shrugged. "More or less, yeah."

"Predictable." Persephone waved her hand, and a bed of blue lilies sprouted around them.

Leon gasped, his gaze shifting from the flowers to her. "You…?"

She picked up one of the flowers and met his gaze, a smile on her face. "Would you consider believing in a goddess?"

_ A goddess?_ Leon wasn't sure what to say; he was expecting something strange, but a goddess? _Heh, that's a new one._ However, the look in her eyes was very sincere. _Is she really telling the truth?_

….

Claire closed her eyes, folded her arms, and slouched a bit in her seat, hoping it would give the impression that she wasn't in the mood to be social while the other soldiers chatted each other up. Besides, she was overdue for a chance to rest. Soon the tram pulled into the station; everyone stood and started filing outside. She noticed some of soldiers were unloading cargo and did her best to help. Once everything was out of the tram, everyone stood in a line and awaited further orders.

VECTOR stood in front of group. "Good work up there, team; we'll be able to survive this madness for much longer. You are all dismissed." He saluted them, and the soldiers gave a salute back before going their separate ways.

Claire sighed. _Okay, now to start my search._ She looked around the facility's station_. This place is huge; however, if everything is still as I remember it, I should be able to find my way around._ Glancing up, she noticed that there were cameras scattered along the ceiling and frowned. _Those could be a problem._ She headed toward the main entrance door with the other soldiers; on the wall she saw a large map. There was a red circle marking one of the floors_. Hmm, it looks like I'm on the third floor, but this facility has ten. How am I going to search all of them without getting caught? I should find a spare computer; maybe I can uncover some data about where they're keeping Hades. _

Entering the main of hall of the floor, Claire glanced at the various rooms. They were filled with scientists, who were working on various experiments. There was a large computer main frame in the room to the left, but there was no way she could get close without one of the scientists being suspicious.

_It's__ so strange. Before, the facility was as destroyed by the outbreak as the city above, but now it's like a stronghold or something._ Claire continued walking and soon reached an elevator. _Maybe I should start from the top._ She approached the elevator but was blocked by two soldiers. "What gives? Let me through."

The male soldier on the right lifted his hand. "Authorization?"

_ Quick, think of something._ She squared her shoulders back and tilted her head up. "My alias is SHARK; I've been requested to the first floor."

"Authorization denied. The Queen has forbade all soldiers and scientists from the first floor; she is too busy entertaining her guests." The female soldier on the left pointed her rifle at Claire. "Now return to your position, soldier."

_ Queen? I don't remember there being any queen working here; what are they talking about?_ Claire furrowed her brow.

Her walkie-talkie clicked on, "_SHARK, do you copy?_"

She pulled it out of the strap at her hip and answered it. "I'm here, sir."

"_Good. I need you to retrieve some crates from level five; your authorization is code T99_."

Claire nodded. "Understood, over and out." She looked at the two soldiers. "Well, my leader, VECTOR, has authorized me for a code T99, so how about fucking off?"

The female soldier scoffed. "Watch your tongue, rookie, or else someone may just cut it out."

"Whatever. Let me in, so I can get this over with." Claire leaned on her right leg with one hand on her hip.

The two soldiers opened the elevator, stepped inside, and stood in the back. Claire followed and stood in the front; she watched one of them hit the button for the fifth floor. The ride was silent, but every now and then Claire could have sworn the two soldiers were whispering something about her. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to be nervous; she was so close. The doors opened and Claire stepped out into the hall. It looked identical to the third floor, but the walls were white instead of red. There was a path that wrapped around the corner to her left while the right led to a dead end.

"We'll expect you back in fifteen minutes." The male soldier walked forward to press another button.

The doors closed and Claire was left alone. She headed to her left and made her way around the corner. Above she noticed another camera, and it seemed to be following her movements. She shook the eerie feeling off and continued on. Turning another corner, the next hall made her instantly grab her handgun. The wall to her right was nothing but thick glass, and on the other side was a large group of naked zombies chained to the floor. They automatically reacted to her presence and tried to pull away from their restraints.

_ Umbrella is so disgusting; I can only imagine how many innocent lives they've taken for these horrible experiments._ Claire stepped back, her eyes never leaving the zombies.

"What are you doing? Put your weapon away, you fool!"

Claire turned to see a dark haired man in a white lab coat; she lowered her gun. "Sorry, it's just a reflex."

The scientist rolled his eyes at her. "Well, save your trigger finger for when you're above ground and follow me before you get us all killed!"

She quickly placed her gun back in its holster and walked after him. "Were you the one who requested the T99?"

"Yes." He entered a pass code into a control panel by one of the doors. It opened, and they headed inside.

Claire examined the room; the man was the only scientist present at the moment. _Perhaps I can make this work. _

The scientist pushed out a dolly with large crates. "Here, a new supply of the T-virus. Now…." He jumped back; Claire had her rifle aimed right at him. "What the hell are you doing?"

Claire stepped in front of the door, blocking his escape. "I have some questions, and it looks like you could be the one to answer them. Just cooperate, and we can get through this nice and smoothly."

He glared at her. "I'm not telling you anything!"

She fired a warning shot past his head, and it broke one of the vials behind him. "I think you will. I overheard something about a god being brought down here; do you know anything about it?"

He whimpered and cowered back. "Well, yes, there was one. Subject 202."

Claire let another warning shot whiz past him. "What is it?"

"I… aah!" He ducked down, covering his head with his hands. "Hades, I believe he's called. I was a part of the team that studied him for any contamination."

She grazed her finger over the trigger. "And where is he now?"

"He and another subject were taken to the first floor for the Queen." The scientist reached over to one of the computers and pressed a button.

An alarm sounded off, and a red light started flashing in the room.

"_Intruder alert! Intruder alert! All soldiers proceed to the fifth floor immediately!_"

Claire gasped. _Oh no_. She quickly ran out of the room. _So Hades is one of the guests the soldiers were talking about? How am I going to get up there; the elevators are guarded.__There has to be a stairway around here somewhere. _However, before she could turn another corner, she heard the sound of numerous footsteps approaching her. She retreated back to where the zombie room was. _Damn, they're down here already._ She quickly hid in the corner, her back pressed against the wall. _What do I have to use?_

Checking her pockets, she saw that she had a few grenades. The soldiers filed into the hallway and started investigating the area. Heart pounding wildly in her chest, Claire took one of the grenades, pulled out the pin, and threw it at the soldiers. She ran back and ducked from the explosion while screams and gunshots rang through the air. However, there was one disturbing sound that broke out; the glass wall shattered from the force of the explosion and loud moans soon followed.

_ Great, I let them loose; __then again, maybe they can serve as a distraction._ Claire ran down another hall; she could hear footsteps chasing her but didn't bother to turn around. She came across another door and read the sign. "It's a stairway." She tried to open the door, but it was locked. "_I need a pass code."_

A bullet shot past her head and struck the control panel for the door, making it malfunction. Turning, she saw two of the soldiers come her way. She pulled on the handle and managed to force the door open.

"You're not getting away!" one of the soldiers shouted, their rifle pointed at her.

Claire rushed into the stairwell, dodging the bullets. She ran up the steps as fast as her feet would allow her; taking out another grenade, she threw it back toward the door. _That should slow them down, hopefully. Now I just have to make it to the first floor; and I'll __deal __with whoever this queen is. _


End file.
